The Ash Conspiracy: Down in Flames
by Kit the Pokemaniac
Summary: Evil is on the rise, but who is this evil? Upon Ash Ketchum's shockingly sudden death, his grieving friends - along with Pikachu and his other Pokemon - start to unravel a conspiracy. What they have to know: is Ash really dead, or is there another outcome to the story? PokeShipping (thank you if you did the poll!) plus Contest, Wishful, Ikari, and other pairs! :) T for blood.
1. Chapter One: Pretty Much a Prologue

"The boy should be there by tomorrow." He reported, running his fingers through his slick, black hair. It was streaked with silver-that was his trademark.

"Understood. And the girl?" She inquired, running dark purple lipstick over her pale lips. She wore similarly colored eye shadow, matching her dark violet eyes. Black eyeliner gave her a cat-like look.

He smiled, but it didn't have the warmth a smile should carry. Instead, his smile looked creepy. His stark white teeth glinted in the dim light provided by the moon. A thin, pale scar made its way down his left cheek, adding to the menacing look. "Oh, she'll be here. Two minutes or so, I suspect."

A dark look crossed her face, and she smiled cruelly. She reached into the folds of her coat and retrieved a shiny black object.

"You do the boy. I'll take the girl."

"Right." He nodded and disappeared into the deeper shadows of the alleyway. She, meanwhile, stepped further into the moonlight. The alleyway was dark enough that no one would be able to see her face, much less recognize her. The dark makeup helped, of course.

There, not ten yards away from her, was the girl. Her target. She was walking down the street, holding a small Pokémon in her arms.

The woman held up the black object. It was half concealed by her hand, but there was no mistaking what it was.

She kissed the barrel of the gun and took aim.

...

Perhaps six hours later, the man stood behind the house. His breath turned to fog in the crisp morning air, and he pulled his coat tighter around him. The long, dark garment had loose arms and reached well below his waist, and the hood concealed his recognizable hair. He had carefully streaked his face with charcoal-just below the eyes and around the mouth. If he were to be seen, getting away would not be a problem; the disguise was so his looks could not be accurately assessed by any onlookers.

Similarly to the way his female colleague had done, the man reached into the folds of his coat. But rather than pulling out a gun, he retrieved a small, ropelike item and held it between two fingers.

The boy... he would be asleep now.

Perfect.

The man struck the match against a board on the house. Once. Twice.

Then a small flame appeared, licking at the edges of the wood hungrily. It wouldn't last to long in this cold weather, though...

A small canteen lay on the ground at his feet. Reaching down to pick it up, he sprinkled the liquid contents on the slabs of wood that made up the house. The flame grew considerably, and would continue to grow.

"Gasoline," he said, flashing another creepy smile. "And fire. Lovely, lovely."

There was no need to conceal any evidence. As long as he did his job, it didn't matter if people knew this was arson or not. He dropped the match and the empty gas canteen on the ground.

Pulling out an XTransceiver, he pressed a button. For a few moments, all he could see on the screen was static. However, an image soon came into focus. It was his female comrade.

"The job is done." He stated.

"Same here." She replied.

Part One of the project was complete.


	2. Chapter Two: The First Shot

"Okay, Pikachu! Use Iron Tail on that rock!"

"Pika. Chu, pi-KA!"

Stress fractures spread on the rock's surface for a moment. Then it shattered beneath the force of Pikachu's Iron Tail attack.

"Whoa! Great job, Pikachu!" Ash cried, pumping his fist into the air. "You're getting stronger and stronger!"

"Pika!" The little Pokémon titled his head upward and smiled at Ash, who rubbed his best friend's head affectionately. "Cha!"

Ash leaned down, gesturing for Pikachu to hop onto his shoulder. As soon as Pikachu was settled, Ash straightened up and began to walk.

"Man... sure is lonely traveling without friends, huh, Pikachu?" Ash said wistfully. Pikachu nodded and sighed, agreeing with his trainer.

The two were on their way home from the Kalos Region. It was the nearing the end of summer, and Ash's mother had wanted her son to come home for a little while so they could spend time together before the weather became cold again. Ash had happily obliged. He had hoped Clemont, Bonnie, and Serena could come, too, but they had taken the opportunity to go back to their own families.

"It's high time I took on a gym challenger myself, anyway," Clemont had said.

"That's right," Bonnie agreed.

"I'm sure my mom would want to see me again. It _has _been awhile since I saw her." Serena had reasoned.

Ash was kind of bummed out about it, but he didn't mind so much. He was going home, after all!

Now, as he walked the little dirt road leading through the Viridian Forest toward Pallet Town, Ash was feeling more and more lonely. He'd thought that perhaps some training with Pikachu would make him feel better, and it did-just not very much.

"But, hey!" Ash said excitedly. "We won't be lonely much longer! We're almost there!"

"Pika!"

Ash reached the crest of a hill, and there was Pallet Town, spread out before him!

"All, right!" Ash started to run down the hill, as did Pikachu. But about halfway down, Ash tripped and then tumbled head over heels for a couple of feet.

As he sat up, rubbing his head, Ash looked up and found himself face-to-face with none other than...

"Ash! Are you all right?" A deep, husky voice exclaimed.

"Brock!" Ash's face lit up. "Hey, what's up?"

Brock laughed. "Not you, apparently. Let me help you up." As Brock hoisted the boy to his feet, Pikachu bounded over.

"Chu! Pikachu!" The Mouse Pokémon exclaimed happily. Brock smiled and picked Pikachu up.

"Well, Pikachu's sure looking healthy! As an aspiring Pokémon doctor, you can trust me on that." Brock noted.

Ash grinned his trademark bright-eyed, excited, lopsided grin. "Great! So, why are you here, anyway?"

Brock tapped his chin. "Well, see, I've been wanting to see what working in a Pokémon lab was like. The school board at the college I'm in said it would be good experience, considering the fields I am pursuing, and so now I'm working with Oak as an assistant and caretaker!"

Ash cocked his head. "I don't really think I understood most of what you said. But I think it means you're working at Professor Oak's lab, and that's great!"

"And Ash," Brock added. "Your mom thought it would be cool to invite some of your friends over. Well, all of your friends."

Ash stared for a moment. "Wait... you mean, everyone's there? At my house?"

Brock grinned. "That's right! Misty, May, Max, Dawn, and two others whose names I have no clue."

Ash jumped up excitedly, startling Pikachu. "Yeah! All right! I'm so psyched! I can't believe Mom did that for us. C'mon, let's go!"

Brock nodded and jogged after Ash. He realized Ash had said "us". "Us", meaning Ash and himself, or Ash and Pikachu? Brock decided on the latter. It was the most likely, anyway. Ash never used the word "me" anymore so much as he used "us", because he just didn't do anything without his best friend and partner. Just one more thing proving how amazingly close Ash and Pikachu really were.

As Ash pushed open the door to his house, several voices yelled "SURPRISE!" and many familiar faces popped out from all around the room.

Max tumbled out from under the couch. May peeked out from behind a bookcase. Cilan stepped in from the kitchen, a delicious-looking serving dome in his hand. Misty popped out from behind a chair, and Iris backflipped down from the ceiling, where she had somehow managed to climb up to.

"Guys!" Ash exclaimed. Then he paused, frowning. "Hey... where's Dawn?"

Ash's mother stepped into the room from the kitchen, where she had most likely been helping Cilan to cook. "Ash!" She cried, rushing over to her son and hugging him tightly. Ash stiffened for a moment, surprised, then relaxed and wrapped his arms around his mother.

"Hey, Mom!" He said with that crooked grin of his. "Long time, no see!"

"Ash, dear! It _has _been so long..." Ms. Ketchum replied, sounding somewhat wistful. She shook her head. "If you were wondering about Dawn, she couldn't come. An important contest of some kind."

Ash stuck out his bottom lip, a bit upset. "Aw, darn it! I was hopin' to see Dawn again!"

Brock scratched the back of his head. "Me too. That's disappointing."

Ash turned to the rest of his friends. "Hey, guys! So glad you're here!"

May tackled Ash with a hug. "Ash! It's been so long!"

Max walked up, too, and leaned over Ash. "Hey, Ash! Guess what? I'm gonna get my starter Pokémon this April! Isn't that great?"

Ash raised an eyebrow. "You are, huh?" As he and May stood up, he ruffled the young ten-year-old's hair. "You were only seven when I last saw you. And I was only 11, wasn't I?"

"I can't believe it! Has it been four years?" Misty stepped over to Ash. "_You _were just a clueless 10-year-old when _I_ last traveled withyou."

Ash grinned at her. Then he turned to Iris and Cilan.

"Well, it hasn't even been a year, and not surprisingly, you're still a kid." Iris chided, wagging a finger at Ash.

"Still full of that battling spirit, I see?" Cilan observed.

"You bet!" Ash responded eagerly. The fourteen-year old really hadn't changed much in the four years that he had been traveling-except that he'd gotten far stronger, and created stronger bonds with his Pokémon.

The day passed fairly quickly. Cilan, Ms. Ketchum, and Brock served the food-which turned out to be M'n'M cookies-and Ash and pals chatted the day away. Of course, there was a bit of nostalgia, and at one point Max and May broke into a bit of a fight. But eventually, the day had to end.

"Okay. The boys can sleep in Ash's room, girls in the guest room." Ms. Ketchum dictated. "I imagine you'll all be heading home tomorrow, is that correct? It will be a long journey, so you all ought to rest."

Everyone soon got situated in their sleeping bags and the lights were turned out. But May wasn't ready to go to sleep yet.

"Misty," she whispered, tapping the redhead on the shoulder. "Misty... I was wondering something."

Misty sat up, rubbing her eyes. "What is it, May?" She mumbled.

"Misty, it's... it's about Ash."

Misty blinked and looked at May, surprised. "About Ash? What do you mean?"

May took a deep breath. "See, I was wondering... Well, you and Ash traveled together for... quite a while. Are you... are you two...?"

Misty's face reddened as she realized what May was implying. "Well... Well, I, you see, I..."

"You-you don't have to tell me," May said quickly.

"No..." Misty shook her head. "It's okay. Ash and I got off to a bad start... it, um, involved my bike. Which ended up getting fried."

May blinked in surprise, but kept listening. _A bike, huh? Well, I guess mine wasn't the only one to get barbecued. _

"But we got to be really good friends and-well, I thought I really did like him. You know, _that _way. But... Well, I had to go home to the gym, and he kept traveling, so I suppose it just... wasn't meant to be. And I really don't think he ever really liked me that way, anyway." Misty looked away.

May's eyes widened. So that was it.

"So... we're in the same boat."

Misty looked up at May, surprised by the brunette's response. Her face softened, and she touched May's hand. "Ash is... an amazing guy. I mean, would you look at all the close friends he's made in four years? And it's not just those of us here, either. It's like he draws people to him..." Misty trailed off.

May nodded. "You're right, Misty. You couldn't be more right."

Then the two girls finally settled into sleep.

...

"Brr, it's awfully chilly tonight." Dawn muttered.

"Pip!" Piplup shivered. "Pip pip pip pip pip, LUP!"

Dawn laughed as she walked down the street. She was on her way home from the contest that had just been held in Sandgem Town, and her house was just up the road. "Well, someone's _awfully _cold! No need to worry, though, Piplup. The house is just up ahead-in fact, I think I can see it!"

Suddenly Dawn stopped, thinking she heard something. Piplup frowned at his trainer. But Dawn shook her head and kept walking. "I'm sure it was nothing," she reassured her partner.

Opening her hand, Dawn admired her newly earned ribbon. She'd be doing her third year of contest competing this year, and here was her first ribbon already!

Dawn kept walking down the street happily.

It happened far too fast.

Dawn had no time to react. A loud _bang _rattled through the air, and pain exploded in the back of her head. She felt herself falling, heard Piplup crying out, and heard a commotion as people awoke to the deafening sound. She was on the ground, writhing in pain, feeling a thick, sticky liquid washing over her neck and onto the ground.

Dawn screamed.

The last thing she saw was her Piplup, standing over her, crying out to her, shaking her, with tears spilling down its little blue face.


	3. Chapter Three: The Deadly Inferno

"Ash! Ash, wake up!"

Ash grumbled something unintelligible and opened one eye. "What is it, Max?"

"Ash, come on! I want you to show me how to train my Pokémon!"

"I already did that. Every day for a whole year. Back when you were seven. Remember?"

"Aw, come _on, _Ash! Please?"

"No. I'm sleeping."

"You sound awake to me."

"Well, get your ears fixed, 'cause I'm fast asleep."

"Your mom's making breakfast..."

Ash was out of bed and fully dressed in a flash.

Max laughed. "Well, that was easy."

...

May slipped into a white undershirt. On top of that, she put a regular shirt, and then - considering how cold it was getting to be as autumn approached - a red hoodie with a Pokéball embroidered at the bottom, near the hem. As she zipped up the hoodie, she heard someone stirring nearby. Iris was just waking up. She looked over at May and opened her mouth like she wanted to say something, then stopped, as if unsure.

May smiled at Iris. "Hey. You're Iris, right? I have to say, your hair is really neat."

Iris blushed. "Th-thanks. Your name is May, isn't it?"

May nodded. "That's right." She gestured to the baby Dragon type sleeping beside Iris's sleeping bag. "That little Pokémon is really cute. What's it called again? There aren't any of those in the wild in any of the other regions besides Unova, at least not that I know of."

"Oh, that's Axew!" Iris smiled warmly as she gently picked up the little Pokémon and held it. "And yeah, they're native to Unova, so you wouldn't find one anywhere else."

May nodded, and then a thought struck her. "So I was wondering... how did you get here, anyway? Max and I came via sea-plane."

"Oh, I just took a boat." Iris replied loftily. "Cilan really enjoys boats. Not as much as he loves trains, but still."

May raised an eyebrow. "Trains?"

"Like you wouldn't believe."

"What? Who's talking about trains?" Misty sat up, stretching and yawning.

"Oh, hey, Misty!" May exclaimed. She was just tying on her bandana as the redhead woke up. "We were just chatting about Cilan's love for trains."

"Oh?" Misty inquired curiously, standing up. She picked up her clothes, which were folded neatly at the edge of her sleeping bag, and walked over to the bathroom. "You may continue." She shut the door and turned on the shower.

By now, Iris was out of bed, too. "Oh, something smells good! I'd guess it was Cilan's cooking but it smells even better than what he can cook up. Hm. It's probably Ms. Ketchum."

"Oh, Cilan can cook?" May asked, bemused. "Funny. So can Brock - and _really _well, too." She giggled. "I wonder if Cilan likes trains as much as Brock loves girls?"

A funny look crossed Iris's face. "...girls?"

...

Brock helped Ms. Ketchum finish cleaning up the kitchen while Cilan began to set out plates and utensils for everyone. Grabbing the remote, the young connoisseur turned on the TV and switched it to the news.

_"...receiving reports of a young girl from Twinleaf Town having been shot last night by an unknown figure. It is uncertain as to whether or not she will live." _

Cilan's eyes widened. That wasn't good news at all, but he supposed nothing on the news was good these days. It was all murders, kidnappings, and Pokémon abuse. Of course, news about the Pokémon League was always good to hear, but that wasn't on nearly as often. With a sigh, Cilan moved his finger to press the power button on the remote...

...and stopped short when he saw a picture.

The girl in the photo had pale blue hair and bright eyes. She wore a white and pink hat with a Pokéball stitched on and a short pink skirt. In her arms was a Piplup.

_"...goes by the name of Dawn Berlitz. Whoever is behind this incident is still unknown." _

Cilan's hands shook. That girl was the one who traveled with Ash in Sinnoh. The one who couldn't make it yesterday because of a Pokémon Contest.

"Oh, Arceus," he breathed. "This is _not _good."

Cilan snatched the remote and quickly turned off the TV before anyone else could see. They'd have to find out eventually, but Cilan didn't want to ruin this day for Ash - and more so for Ms. Ketchum.

Ash walked in at that exact moment - or rather, _ran _in. Very quickly. Pikachu was on his shoulder.

"Ash! I didn't know you were a morning person." Cilan mused.

"I'm not, unless my mom is cooking," Ash responded with that lopsided grin of his. He sat down at the table with a _thump, _clearly ready to eat.

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed. "Chu, pikachu!"

"Looks like Pikachu's just as ready to eat as you are, Ash!" Cilan noted, bemused.

Everyone else began to wander in after that. First came Max, then May and Iris - which was a surprise, considering the fact that the two hadn't met before yesterday - and Misty last. Ms. Ketchum and Brock came in from the kitchen. Then Cilan dished out the food, and he sat down last.

It was a hearty meal, consisting of French toast and waffles with powdered sugar and syrup, respectively, and scrambled eggs with bacon mixed in and sprinkled with cheese. And, of course, Moo Moo milk!

Ash was probably on his third plate of food and Cilan halfway through his first when Brock froze. He took a breath, then another, through his nose. He was sniffing the air.

Cilan wasn't the only one to notice.

"Brock, what's up?" Misty asked curiously.

A look of shock passed over Brock's face. Then he stood up and shouted, "Everyone, GET OUT! NOW!"

May was startled by Brock's sudden outburst. "Brock, what's wrong?!"

"GET OUT, NOW! THERE'S A FIRE! _RUN!_" Brock grabbed Ms. Ketchum's arm and started for the door.

As if on cue, the room burst into flames.

...

_Beep. Beep. Beep. _

That was all she could cling to as she sat by the bed, clinging to her daughter's hand. That steady _beep. _

"Ms. Berlitz."

She looked up at him tiredly. Dark bags hung under her eyes. Her lips were pressed into a tight line. "Yes?"

"We believe your daughter will live."

It was the first sign of hope she'd had all night. Ms. Berlitz's spirit lifted, if only a little, and her face showed it.

"However..." The doctor cleared his throat and continued. "Due to brain injury and trauma, she has been unresponsive as of yet. The gunshot may have caused her to enter a coma."

Instantly, all that hope was crushed. Her daughter. In a coma. It was just too much to bear.

"Please, Dawn..." She whispered hoarsely. "Get through this. Please. You're all I have."

...

Smoke stung Iris's throat. She was blind in this mess of flames and ash. Axew was in her arms.

"Help!" She cried. "Please!"

Everything was hectic. As soon as the fire sprouted up, chaos ensued. Iris had lost sight of everyone else, and she was beginning to think she might die in the inferno.

Suddenly a hand reached out and grasped her own. "You're not dying on my watch!" She heard him yell. He ran, and she ran with him. They stumbled into the light.

"You okay, Iris?" There was genuine concern in Ash's voice. He was the one who'd saved her life.

"I-I'm fine," she stammered.

"Well, we made it out, huh, Pikachu?" Ash turned to look at Pikachu and froze.

Pikachu wasn't there.

"_Pikachu!" _Ash yelled. He whipped around to face May. "Where is he?!"

"I-I thought he was with you!" May cried out.

"No." Ash muttered. "No. No. No. I am _not _losing Pikachu." With a growl, he grabbed all his Pokéballs and shoved them into May's arms. Then he charged back into the inferno.

"Ash, wait, _no!"_ Brock screamed after him. But it was too late.

...

It was too hot. Smoke stung Pikachu's lungs. He stumbled around in the blaze, screaming out for his trainer.

"_Pikapi!"_ He cried desperately. "_Pikapi!_"

"I'm coming, Pikachu!"

Pikachu's ears twitched. Ash! Ash was coming!

"Pikapi!" He cried again.

"Pikachu!" Ash yelled. There he was. Just a few feet away. Pikachu stumbled over to him, and Ash gathered the little Pokémon into his arms.

"I've got you, buddy," he murmured. "Don't worry."

Pikachu buried his head in his trainer's shirt, breathing in the comforting scent. He clung to Ash with all his might.

Ash ran with everything he had. He had to make it out. He had to...

"Ash!"

It was a voice. Calling his name.

"Ash, come on! HURRY!"

It was Misty and Brock. Max and May. Cilan and Iris. His mom. They were all there, urging him to make it.

"Pikapi..." Pikachu whispered. Ash ran harder.

"It's not gonna hold!" Ash heard Brock yell. He was right. The house's supporters were creaking and groaning.

In a split second, Ash realized he was going to die. And some part of his mind accepted that. But if he died, then Pikachu could, too, even if Ash shielded the Pokémon with his own body. And if there was even a chance of Pikachu dying... well, Ash couldn't accept that.

So Ash jumped.

He leaped for the doorway. He was about ten feet away. He wasn't going to make it.

With every last ounce of strength he had, Ash _threw _Pikachu, who landed a few yards out of the burning building.

And Ash Ketchum, aspiring Pokémon Master, friend to all Pokémon and people, disappeared forever under the rubble of a burning building.

His hat tumbled away from the house and came to a stop at Pikachu's feet. As the smoke cleared, Pikachu looked up desperately.

May looked up.

Max looked up.

Brock looked up.

Misty looked up.

Iris looked up.

Cilan looked up.

Ms. Ketchum looked up.

There were the remains of the Ketchum household, in a blazing bonfire, clearly visible. But Ash was gone.


	4. Chapter Four: The Shocking Reality

"You shot her."

"Yes, sir."

"Is she dead?"

"No, sir."

"Well, why _not?_!" He spat. "I told you I wanted her dead. Her, along with all the others."

"Y-yes sir." She lowered her head. "I will not fail you again."

She slipped out of his office, down the corridor, and out of the building. She had a job to do.

...

"Pi... ka..." Pikachu hiccupped. "Pi... ka... Pi! PikaPI!" Pikachu was sobbing now, clutching Ash's red-and-white hat. "PIKAPI!"

May's hands shook. The Pokéballs spilled out of her hands and onto the ground. She stared at the burning rubble, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

A Jeep pulled up. "Delia!" A voice yelled. It was Professor Oak's voice. "Delia, what _happened?!" _The Professor cried, scrambling out of his car. "Your house! Is everyone all right? And where... where is..." Oak trailed off, seeing the shocked faces of Ash's mother and his friends, and the sobbing Pikachu.

Delia turned to the Professor. She raised one hand to point to the smoking remains of the house. "Ash is... in there..." She whispered. Tears glistened in her eyes.

Professor Oak's face blanched as the situation dawned on him. "No."

It was hard to comprehend, and impossible to believe. It was all so sudden. May's heart refused to accept the possibility that Ash was dead, but what else was there to believe? She dropped to her knees and her face fell into her hands. And May began to cry.

"Ash," she choked. "Oh... oh, _Ash_!" She sobbed almost as hard as Pikachu did. And that was when everyone else broke down. Max clutched his sister, tears rolling off his cheeks. Misty buried her face in Ms. Ketchum's shirt, and Ms. Ketchum leaned on Misty. Brock gritted his teeth and wiped away tears as they came down faster and faster. Iris sobbed. Cilan's pale hands shook with the effort of holding in his tears.

_First Dawn,_ Cilan was thinking. _And now this. Oh, no, no, no... _

Pikachu dropped the hat. It stumbled over to a Pokéball.

Three of Ash's Pokéballs had Pokémon in them - Fletchling, Froakie, and Hawlucha. In their Pokéballs, they were crying, too.

Of the three empty Pokéballs, one that a tiny lightning bolt symbol on it - just above the button.

Pikachu's Pokéball.

Pikachu stopped short in front of the Pokéball. It gave another short hiccup, then leaned forward and touched the Pokéball with its nose. For a moment, Pikachu glowed red. Then it disappeared inside the Pokéball.

Any hope among Ash's friends that Ash was alive dissipated at that moment.

Pikachu in a Pokéball...

It was just proof that Ash couldn't be alive. This would never have happened, had Ash been there. Pikachu would never be in a Pokéball, had Ash been there.

...

Mrs. Berlitz held tightly to her daughter's hand. Tears glistened in her blue eyes. All night, she had waited restlessly. All night. And Dawn was still unresponsive. She'd been shot the night before - very, very late. Mrs. Berlitz remembered that Dawn had turned down an invitation from Ash Ketchum's mother to stay at their house for a night.

If Dawn had gone, she'd have been safe at Ash's house. She'd have even been asleep.

It was her own fault, Dawn's mother knew. Dawn had wanted to go, but Mrs. Berlitz had convinced her to be more serious about her coordinating.

Maybe if she had let her daughter go to Ash's house, she wouldn't be in the hospital right now.

Suddenly, the power snapped off. Every light and machine and noise died in a moment. Mrs. Berlitz froze.

A loud whistle, almost like a scream, rattled the air. Instinctively, Mrs. Berlitz's hands flew to her ears.

Then there was an explosion.

A loud, huge _boom_, and the sound of commotion - glass breaking, people screaming. She could smell smoke.

_"DAWN!_" Mrs. Berlitz screamed. She stumbled back from the bed where Dawn lay unconscious. Piplup cried out from where it had been sitting near Dawn's pillow. Its cry was abruptly cut short, and Mrs. Berlitz's blood ran cold.

"DAWN_!"_ She screamed again. "_DAWN_!" A wall of fire separated her from her daughter.

A hand seized her shoulder, yanking her backwards. "Quickly_!_" Shouted a voice. "We have to get out! You can't save her anymore_!_"

"_DAWN, NO!" _

As she was pulled out of the burning hospital, all Mrs. Berlitz could think about was an image that would be burned into her mind forever - the image she had been sho ked and horrified to see, late last night: the image of her daughter, Dawn Berlitz, lying unconscious in the street in a puddle of blood.

...

Professor Oak held the Pokéball in his hand.

He was back at his lab, all alone with no one but the Pokémon. Even Tracey and Brock were out at the moment - most likely spending time with Ash's other friends and his mother.

Ash's mother.

It was terrible, to think about that poor woman. She had no one left. When her husband left, soon after Ash was born, that boy was all she had. He was her pride and joy, her everything. _"Ash is the world - to me." _She had said once.

Now her world was gone.

Professor Oak turned the Pokéball round in his hand. Pikachu. The Professor couldn't imagine what it must be like for the little Mouse Pokémon. Ash and Pikachu were more than best friends. They did everything together! Ash and Pikachu shared an amazing love for one another. Ash would give his _life _for Pikachu.

Ash _did _give his life for Pikachu.

A tear glistened at the edge of Oak's eye. Pikachu and Ash had been together for so long; they played together, trained together, traveled together, and even slept together.

Well, that was over now.

...

In the comfortable space provided by the Pokéball, Pikachu continued to sob.

All of Pikachu's old life - its memories and joys, battles and adventures - it was all over now.

Nothing would ever be the same, with Ash gone.


	5. Chapter Five: A New Start

_**Hey, all my wonderful readers! So, I have decided to change something. It is kind of important. I decided that instead of it having been summer when Ash and co. visited his mom and everything, I'm going to say it was late spring - specifically, the month of March. That will make this whole thing work out a lot better. Thanks! **_

The boy blinked blearily. All he could see was darkness. His hands were chained to the wall, as were his feet, and he hung by the chains.

He tried to move and groaned in pain. _Oh, that does NOT feel good._

All he could remember was fire. Heat, red flames, voices screaming his name... his name.

_Ash. Ash Ketchum. _That was it.

A tiny Pokémon, held in his arms, clearly hurt. He was running, running, and some part of him knew he was going to die.

Then... then the flames surrounded him, crashed on him. He screamed. And then darkness.

That was what Ash could remember. As his memories came into focus, he remembered more - his friends, Professor Oak, his Pokémon, his mother. And Pikachu... oh, Pikachu.

How had Ash gotten here? Where _was _here? He was alive - or at least he thought he was - but did they know that?

A burning building had collapsed on top of him, so Ash would guess not.

Ash let that sink in. His mother, his only relation, was convinced he was _dead. _All of his closest friends - not to mention his best friend, Pikachu - thought he was dead.

Ash shuddered. Maybe he was dead.

Suddenly, pain lanced through Ash's body, charged with electricity. Ash screamed. It was Pikachu's thunderbolt, but a hundred times worse. Ash kept screaming.

The pain... It was too much to endure. Ash saw spots dance before his eyes.

_I'm going to pass out, _he managed to think. With one last gasp, everything went dark again.

...

Dawn's eyes opened slowly. She saw a blurry image of someone standing over her, talking. No - more than one person. It was a _lot _of people.

She was lying down on a hard, flat surface. Pain pulsed in the back of her head and neck. Dawn started to remember...

_The noise. The pain. The explosion in the back of her head. The commotion. The helpless cries of her Piplup. Everything going black. _

How she had gotten here, Dawn had no idea. Someone had to have found her after she'd been shot. Maybe she was in a hospital now?

As her mind tried to process all this, Dawn heard someone saying something. It sounded like, "_She's awake!" _There was a bit of a commotion, and another voice: "_Hurry. Giver her the drug." _Dawn realized what was happening a moment too late.

Something sharp pierced her skin, and she fell back into unconsciousness.

...

The Pokéball sat alone on a shelf. Professor Oak did his work, talked to trainers, and cared for Pokémon all while that Pokéball sat by itself.

Once a day, though, the Professor walked over to the ball. He picked it up, let Pikachu out, and fed it. Then he would talk to Pikachu, try to get it to open up.

It never worked.

...

_**ONE**__**MONTH**__**LATER **_

...

Emily opened one eye. Her alarm was going off. Annoyed, she reached out and slammed a hand down on the clock. It worked every time. The alarm abruptly stopped, and Emily rolled over and fell back asleep.

About an hour later, she woke to the sound of Pidgey chirping. Sunlight streamed through her window. Emily slowly sat up and yawned, feeling far better after the much-needed extra hour of sleep.

"EMILY! GET DOWN HERE! YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE!" It was her mother's voice.

Emily froze.

This was the day she was supposed to get her first Pokémon.

Her eyes drifted to her alarm clock. It read 10:15. She was supposed to be there thirty minutes ago!

Emily tore off her covers and jumped out of bed. She raced down the stairs and out the door.

"Hi, Mom! Bye, Mom!" She yelled, and then she was gone.

Emily hopped on her bike and was off like a shot. She tore through the Viridian Forest, using the quickest route leading from her home - in Viridian City - to Pallet Town, where the Professor guy's lab was.

"What was his name? Maple? Redwood?" Emily muttered. Then it hit her. "Oh, right! Oak!"

She was there in about ten minutes. Emily dropped her bike and raced into the lab.

"I'm... here... Professor... Oak..." She puffed. She looked up. Professor Oak stood there, in all his glory, arms crossed.

"Well, someone's late." He observed. Emily blushed.

The Professor turned back to his computer and began to type something. "I'm sorry, Emily... all the Pokémon are gone."

Emily's jaw dropped open. "What?!" She gasped.

The Professor turned to her. "Emily, there were three other trainers who also turned ten years old this past year. Today's the day in April when all trainers who have turned 10 get their starter Pokémon. The other three trainers already took Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle. I'm sorry."

"B-but... but... there's got to be s-some Pokémon you can g-give me!" Emily stammered. "At least one!"

Professor Oak's eyes drifted to a lone Pokéball, sitting on a shelf. Emily followed his eyes, and her face lit up with hope.

"Well, Emily... there is one. But this Pokémon... I am just not sure if you can handle it. An experienced trainer, sure - perhaps they could work with this Pokémon and get it to open up." The Prof sighed. "I'm just not sure it's a good choice as a starter Pokémon."

"I'll take it, Professor! I'll take any Pokémon!" Emily assured him quickly.

"Well..." Professor Oak stood and picked up the Pokéball. "This Pokémon... has had a dark past."

Emily blinked. "What do you mean?"

"It's... it's nothing." The Professor shook his head. "Okay, come on out!"

He pressed the button on the ball. In a flash of light, out came a small, cute yellow Pokémon!

Emily gasped. "Hey, is that a _Pikachu?!"_

Professor Oak nodded. "Indeed."

Emily's face was practically glowing. "Aw, it's _so cute!_" She cried, grabbing up the Pokémon and squeezing it in a hug.

Pikachu was surprised to be called out, and even more surprised to be hugged. For a moment, some part of Pikachu hoped it would be Ash, and its spirit lifted.

But no. It wasn't Ash.

And, after a moment of struggling, Pikachu used Thunderbolt on Emily.

"Waaaugh-augh-aaaaaauuughhh!" Emily cried. It was really a comical sight, and the Prof had to restrain himself from laughing.

"Well... do your best, Emily." He said. "Here - a Pokédex and five Pokéballs. And here is Pikachu's Pokéball."

"Thanks... Pro... fessor..." Emily stuttered. She shook her head, attempting to recover.

"Good luck on your journey!" He called after her as she left the lab.

"Thank you!" She called back. Emily recalled Pikachu to its Pokéball. Then Emily set off on her very first journey.

...

As she rode through the Viridian Forest, Emily caught sight of a flock of Pidgeotto. "Wow," she murmured.

Just ahead of that, some Spinarak dangled from tree branches using their silk. "Cool!" Emily cried.

A little farther up ahead, Kakuna had all settled onto a tree as they waited to evolve. Some Metapod were there, too.

Eventually, seeing something, Emily stopped and rested her bike against a tree. She called out Pikachu, who looked at her reproachfully.

"Hey, Pikachu," she whispered. She pointed to a cute pink Pokémon wandering just up ahead. "You see that Skitty? I want us to try and catch it!"

Pikachu looked away. "Pika."

Emily huffed. "Aw, c'mon. Please help me out?"

Pikachu sighed. "Pikachu..." It got into a battle stance and faced the Skitty.

"Oh, yay!" Emily giggled. "Okay, Pikachu. What attacks does it know...?"

Emily pulled out her Pokédex and checked Pikachu's moves. "Whoa... It knows Thunderbolt and Quick Attack, of course, but Iron Tail and Electro Ball? Wow! And it's so high level for a starter... oh, well."

Emily cleared her throat. "Okay, Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu froze.

_"Okay, Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash yelled. _

_"I know you can do it, Pikachu!" _

_"Don't worry, Pikachu, I'm coming!" _

Memories filled Pikachu's mind. Memories of Ash saying those exact words. Pikachu stood there, ready to cry.

"Pikachu! Snap out of it... I said use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu blinked. Then it gritted its teeth. "Pi... ka... CHUUUUU!"

Pikachu's Thunderbolt hit the Skitty hard, and it flew backwards... right into Emily's bike!

Emily whipped her head around and stared for a moment at her charred and sizzling bike. Then she scowled at Pikachu, before turning and throwing an empty Pokéball at the Skitty.

It wobbled...

Wobbled...

Wobbled...

Then blinked, made a _ding _sound, and the Skitty was caught!

"Yes!" Emily cried. "I caught a Skitty!"

Pikachu watched Emily for a moment, feeling empty. It didn't mean a thing if Ash wasn't here.

Then Emily once again became aware of her bike issue. Again, she glowered at Pikachu.

"I get the feeling you did that on purpose." She muttered. She pulled out Pikachu's Pokéball and recalled it. "From now on, you owe me a bike."


	6. Chapter Six: Tears and Memories

_Here it is - the long-awaited chapter five! If you don't want to cry, you might not want to read this! And remember, I really, REALLY love reviews...! :D _

_**Six Days After the Fire**_

"Come downstairs already, will you, Misty?!"

Misty didn't respond. She felt too... too... _empty._ Devoid of feelings; devoid of thought. She was a shell of herself. She had been for the past six days now, refusing to come out of her room. Her sisters had brought food to her, insisting she eat. Misty was fairly sure she'd rather starve, but she ate anyway. Never very much. Just enough to keep her going.

_The gym._ Misty knew it had to be a mess. Her sisters couldn't battle; even if they could, they just _wouldn't _battle, and Misty couldn't fix that.

She stood up from her bed, where she had been sitting. Her legs shook as she walked over to the door and turned the knob. Then Misty stepped out of her room for the first time in almost a week.

That didn't change a thing, though. She was only doing this for the gym, and for her Pokémon, and so her sisters wouldn't overreact and think she had Pokérus and call 911. As ridiculous as that was, it had _happened _before. Never underestimate the density of the three oldest Waterflower sisters.

But Misty didn't have the energy to laugh at the memory. She was so empty inside, and she felt like whatever was left of her was beginning to wilt away.

Six days after Ash's death, and she was beginning to follow suit.

...

May didn't know how to cope with it.

She wanted to hide herself in her closet and never come out. But she couldn't, because Max needed her. Of course Max needed her. So May hung on to her sanity, hung on to the real world, for the sake of her little brother.

That didn't mean it didn't hurt.

And when she'd found out about Dawn, it hurt even more. It gnawed away at her, making her want to scream with the agony grief gave her. They had been really good friends. Ash was their connection, and soon they found that they had formed a connection of their own, May and Dawn had.

Dawn. The coordinater who, in many ways, was just like herself. Dawn was funny, Dawn was charming, Dawn loved her Pokémon and she was pretty dang smart.

But she was gone, now... and so was Ash.

Every day, she was reminded of him. Everywhere she looked, he was there, stubbornly refusing to get out of her life.

He was so stubborn.

Not that she cared anymore. She'd do anything to have him back - Ash Ketchum, stubborn and somewhat dense aspiring Pokémon Master. May choked back a sob.

He'd never be a Pokémon Master now.

...

_"Come on, Ash, I want you to show me how to train my Pokémon!" _

Pokémon training. Max stared at the ceiling, feeling desolate. What did Pokémon training matter anyway? One day, he was going to die, and none of it would be worth anything anymore.

Death had never seemed... _real _to Max before. It was a fact of life, sure. But it was all something else, something of another world. He was here, with his friends, playing with Pokémon and traveling the world. Death didn't have a place in his life.

Well, now it did.

And now Max was starting to think about things he'd never thought about before. Why live? What's the point, when death is always there, waiting to grab you?

Max had been living in a fantasy up until this point. Now, the real world had made him realize just how surreal that fantasy had been.

Max lay on his back on the floor, staring at the ceiling. Then he sat up. He stood and walked to the door of his bedroom, about to leave. He needed to find May.

May was all that mattered to him now. And he had the feeling he was the only thing that kept her clinging on to life.

So that meant he had to keep on living. Max supposed _that _was the point of life - love was. To love other people, to give them consolation, to give them happiness. And May needed that from him, now more than ever.

...

Iris let fall a tear.

She wasn't usually one for crying. _Well, Ash isn't usually one for dying, either,_ she thought, laughing bitterly at the morbid joke.

Axew lay sleeping in Iris's lap. Perched in a tree, she'd have normally been quite happy here. But happy couldn't describe any of her feelings as of late - specifically, the last six days.

In the last six days, Iris had stopped caring about most everything - everything, that is, except her Pokémon.

She turned down the village Elder's invitations to talk. She completely shut out Shannon. And she couldn't bring herself to speak to Cilan, lest she break into sobs. That was the _last _thing she wanted to do in front of the well put-together connoisseur.

Cilan carried too many memories. He carried the memories of every adventure he and Iris and... He and Iris had shared.

Iris caught herself avoiding the name. Another tear rolled down her cheek and dripped off her chin. _Ash. Ash was his name. I can't just pretend it wasn't. _

Speaking about Ash in the he past tense. That hurt, too. It was just one more reminder that everything they had once shared was gone.

Maybe it was a good idea to talk to Cilan. Maybe she ought not to avoid the situation. She couldn't ignore him forever, could she?

More tears began to spill. Maybe she would talk to him. But not yet.

Iris knew she would never, ever get over Ash's death. But only once she pulled herself together enough that she could hold in her tears, only then would she talk to Cilan.

Or anyone else, for that matter.

...

Cilan's clothes were not in good condition. Neither was his hair. But for once, the connoisseur didn't even care.

He had come home the day after the fire. His brothers were clearly relieved he was all right.

_All right? _

Ha. Cilan was nowhere close to "all right."

He was a mess. His look, his life, his thoughts and emotions - all a complete mess. He now stood in front of a mirror, trying to fix his hair, all too aware of the dull eyes and red face staring back at him from the glass.

He had not been himself at all the last six days.

The first day, he had cried into his pillow in his room.

The second day, he had screamed into that pillow.

The third day, unable to control his grief-induced fury, he had smashed a few things.

The fourth day, he attempted to console himself by running through his notes on Pokémon and trainer evaluations, only to scatter the notecards in frustration, and cry some more.

On the fifth day, Cilan had sat in his bedroom silently all day long, not feeling anything and not wanting to.

And today, on the sixth day, he was trying to pull himself together.

Cilan didn't know if he would ever be able to battle any challengers again. Every time he saw a trainer, he was reminded of Ash. Every time he watched a Pokémon battle, he was reminded of Ash. Every time he saw anyone or anything with any kind of fire, he was reminded of Ash.

_Fire. _

Ash's most amazing quality was his fire inside. And, ironically, fire was what came to be his demise.

Cilan stared into the mirror for a moment longer, his hands shaking. Then he buried his face in his hands and cried some more.

...

Brock looked down at the half-cooked food on the stove. His one hand was on the frying pan's handle, and his other was at his side.

"Hey, Brock?"

Brock looked down. A girl with dark maroon hair was gazing up at him.

"What is it, Yolanda?" Brock asked gently, kneeling down to get on eye level with his younger sister. His tone was loving, but somewhat off, as if he was pushing back another emotion entirely. "Something the matter?"

"No, I was just wondering... could I maybe help you out? All the girls at my school say that their moms teach them to cook and they can bake cookies and stuff, and, well..." Yolanda trailed off.

Brock gave his sister a shaky smile. "Of course, Yolanda. Of course I will."

As Brock taught Yolanda to make spaghetti, he found his thoughts were elsewhere.

Ash and Dawn... Brock's thoughts were with Ash and Dawn.

Dawn, one of his closest companions, and one who never ceased to look on the bright side of things, was gone now, and Brock could hardly see the bright side in anything anymore. She always worked hard to look her best and stay positive, and that was what made her remarkable. She had been so remarkable, just as Brock had heard her been called many times at contests. She would never have any remarkable contest performances ever again.

And Ash. Always trying, and always doing the impossible. He was remarkable, and so much more.

In so many ways, Brock's siblings were just like Ash. Forrest, who was always saying he wanted to be the world's greatest Rock Pokémon trainer, and working at it, too. Yolanda, who always wanted to learn from Brock. Salvadore, who was a bit too confident for his own good. Suzie, who was a bit clumsy - no, _very _clumsy - but never quit at anything she did. Even little Tilly, who could see the good and the wonderful in everything and everyone.

In fact, the only reason Brock had not completely fallen apart was because of his siblings. He couldn't fall apart, for their sake.

A tear rolled down Brock's cheek and fell into the pan. Dinner was going to be salty tonight.

Ash Ketchum was amazing. Brock remembered how Ash's Pikachu had beaten his own Onix four years earlier. He remembered all the many times Ash's drive, spirit, and determination had pulled through and overcome impossible odds.

_Impossible. _The word had no meaning in Brock's life anymore.

Once, it was impossible to win a battle with the odds stacked against you. Ash had proven that wrong. Once, it was impossible that Ash could ever really leave Brock's life once he was there. Ash had gone and proved that wrong six days ago. Once, it was impossible for Brock to cry in front of his siblings. Ash was proving that wrong right now.

Brock's broad shoulders shook. More tears fell, one by one, into the pan. Dinner was going to be very salty tonight indeed.

...

Serena didn't know what to think.

Ash had invited her to come to his house, meet his mom, enjoy some time together. Serena turned him down, and never saw him again.

_Was it my fault? _

As ridiculous as that was, the thought lingered at the edge of Serena's mind, nagging her. Because what if it was? What if she could have saved Ash, had she been there?

She had heard the story from a girl named May - one who must have been a friend of Ash's. May had been a mess when she called, and Serena had been shell-shocked. She was a mess now, too.

Lying on her bed in her room, Serena felt tears spilling over her cheeks and wetting her blankets. She felt a sob rising in her throat.

Ash was gone.

She didn't even have a proper goodbye. She had said, "See you in a week" and he had responded with "Yeah, bye!" And then he raced up the steps to board the seaplane, and was gone.

Serena rolled over so her face was in her pillow and let out choked cries. The boy she had thought she loved was gone.

_Loved. _

Serena had loved Ash.

It was ironic that she came to this conclusion for the first time only after it was too late. Too late to tell Ash, too late to make anything out of it.

Serena reached up and brushed her fingers across her upper cheek, just under her left eye. A tiny scrape ran along her skin, not very noticeable, but still very much there. She had gotten it from an annoying tree branch on what she would later find out was the day Ash died.

It had been so annoying then, and she had been mad at the tree. So silly - to be angry at a plant! Now she wouldn't look her best for her next PokéVision video... ha. PokéVision. It seemed a mere trifle, now that Ash was gone.

Serena hugged her chest and sobbed.

Ash was gone.

No matter how many times she thought those three words, they never got less shocking and terrible.

"Ash is... gone," Serena whispered, then dissolved into tears once more.

...

Delia Ketchum sat listlessly on the couch in Professor Oak's living room. Tracey and Gary sat facing her, on the opposite couch.

Gary was staring, stony-faced, at his cup of ice water. Tracey was looking out the window, his sketchbook in hand, but his pencil lay snapped in half on the ground and the page was blank. Delia's hands shook too much to pick her coffee up off the small table. She was pale and dark bags hung under her eyes. Her hair, usually kept neatly in a ponytail, was frizzy and sticking out from all angles. But Delia didn't appear to care.

She had nothing left, or so it seemed to her. Her husband had left her before Ash was born, or even named. He hadn't really even cared about her. When Ash was born, he became her whole world. When he left on his journey, she was first worried about him all the time, then finally decided her son could take care of himself - and if not, he had good friends with him. Still, she was always a bit lonely.

And now she knew she would never see Ash again.

Delia's world had fallen apart. She had nothing left to live for.

Delia clenched her hands into fists. She slammed them onto the table, spilling her coffee. Gary and Tracey looked over, concerned.

"Ash!" The distressed mother cried out. "Ash!" She dissolved into sobs, holding her head in her hands. Gary reached out and placed a wary hand on Delia's shoulder, attempting to comfort her. And it did, perhaps a little. But Delia was too broken for it to do much.

...

_**ONE MONTH LATER (the day Emily received Pikachu)**_

...

Max slowly walked up the steps to Professor Birch's lab. He looked up at the huge door, reached up, and knocked.

It was the day his journey would begin.

One of the Professor's many assistants opened the door and ushered the young ten-year-old in.

As Max walked into the part of the lab where new trainers get their starter Pokémon, Max began to feel excited for the first time in about a month. For the first time since...

A voice in his head whispered something he didn't want to hear. This was supposed to be a _happy _day, after all. So Max just ignored it - or tried to, at least.

Max waited for the Professor a few moments, then, out of impatience, wandered over to some Pokéballs. He picked one up and accidentally pressed the button, letting out an Azurill!

"Gah!" Max cried, startled. Then he knelt down and peered at the little blue Pokémon. "Hey, it's cute." He smiled and reached out a hand to the Azurill.

Happily, the Azurill jumped up and bounced up Max's arm onto his head! It sat down on Max's head contentedly. Max giggled.

"That Azurill sure likes you."

Max looked up, surprised to see Professor Birch, but he was careful not to upset the Azurill on his head. "Uh... I.. I guess."

Birch laughed. "It's quite all right, my boy. You know, that Azurill doesn't have a trainer."

Max blinked, seeing where the Professor was headed. He had wanted a Treecko, but this Azurill seemed to love him... And he was beginning to feel fond of it, too.

"It... it doesn't?" Max responded.

"No. And I'm sure it wants one..."

"Oh, Professor, couldn't I please have Azurill for my starter?" Max burst out, suddenly excited at the idea.

_This is kinda like Ash and Pikachu, _Max couldn't help thinking. He was immediately saddened by the thought, but shook it off.

"Max, I think that's a wonderful idea." Professor Birch smiled warmly at the young boy. Max leaped up from where he was crouched on the floor. The Azurill lost its balance for a moment and started to tumble, but Max caught it in his arms. He laughed, and so did Azurill.

"I think I should nickname you. How about Zuzu?"

"Zu!" The little Pokémon responded. The two laughed some more.

It was the beginning of a perfectly matched friendship.

...

May felt her spirits lifting for the first time in a long time as she read the text.

_Want 2 get dinner new place down the street? _

It was from Drew.

May's rival had seemed to be a lot more than a rival to her as of late. Soon after the... incident, May hadn't wanted to compete in contests anymore. She felt it was pointless. Drew had been upset about that to a certain degree, and had been coming over to her house and training with her. Often, May chose to sit out and watch. But seeing Drew train had made her a bit more interested in contests... And she had loved every one of his combinations. Watching Drew was kind of amazing.

He had probably invited her to dinner for the sole purpose of convincing her to continue to compete in contests, but even that was touching in a way. May wondered why Drew cared so much...

_I'll B there. _

Hearing a knock at the door, May looked up from her Xtransceiver. She strode over to the door and naked it open, to come face to face with her brother. Well, almost face to face. Max was still a bit shorter than her, though he was catching up fast.

The surprising thing, though, was the little blue Pokémon perched on his head.

"Aw, it's so _cute!"_ She exclaimed. Then she frowned, puzzled, and cocked her head. "Wait... An _Azurill?_"

"You bet!" Max grinned at his sister. "And I have a question for ya, May."

"What's that?" May replied.

"Well, I'm gonna be battling gyms... and you'll be competing in contests, right?" May shifted uncomfortably at the mention of contests - she still had not made up her mind. Max continued, "So I was just wondering if... well, would you go on my journey with me?"

...

_"Wow, Fennekin! You look so cute!" _

_"And that's how my Pokémon and I get along." _

_"Dont worry. There's enough for everyone... oh!" _

Serena scrolled through her PokéVision videos, her eyes dull. The latest ones she had made had looked just the same, but the smile she showed for the camera was plastic.

Serena felt nowhere close to OK. She felt like there was something wrong with her... though, to be honest, Serena was fairly sure she knew exactly what was wrong.

She had a condition commonly known as _heartbreak._

...

Professor Oak stared at a wrinkled photograph in his hand. He wiped a tear from his cheek as soon as it appeared, not wanting to let himself cry. Quickly, the Professor slipped the photo into a drawer.

_Think about something happy. Think about Emily!_ The Professor chastised himself. And he did think about her, and a small, sad smile made its way onto his face.

Maybe Pikachu would finally be able to look past Ash's death, now that it had a fresh start.

...

Pikachu sat in the Pokéball, feeling emptier than ever.

Why was Ash gone? Why did it have to be _Ash _in that fire? Why had he gotten a new trainer? _Why?! _

Pikachu felt long-buried memories begin to resurface, and tried to hold back tears... but failed. Emily didn't realize just how dark Pikachu's past truly was.


	7. Chapter Seven: A Hope for Pikachu

_Y'all have been waiting for this... so, here it is! The next wonderful chapter in the Ash Conspiracy! _

**Me: What?! I don't own Pokémon?! When did THAT happen?! Oh... right. So, um, I'm supposed to TELL them I don't own Pokémon? Ha! Not gonna happen... wait, the mic is still on?! They just HEARD that?! Are you KIDDING me?! **

**Ash: Arceus, Kit, quiet down. I am reading here! **

**Gary: Hey, where am I in the story? Come on, Kit! Put me in! **

**Iris: Just like a kid! Put him in or he'll never shut up. **

**Gary *glares*: Gee, thanks, Iris. I appreciate it. **

**Me: Oh, Arceus, you three. This A/N is getting far too long and you are not helping. **

...

"Gosh darn it, Pikachu, where _are _we?"

The Mouse Pokémon looked up at its trainer with a dull expression, and one which was almost disdainful, in a way. Of course, it wasn't really so much the issue that Emily was holding the map upside down, and that Pikachu had known almost right away while Emily was oblivious; but that Ash would have done the same thing, and Pikachu would have thought it funny. It was hardly funny now. A month had gone by, yet nothing had changed - at least, nothing to do with Pikachu's depression.

Pikachu's ears twitched. Beside it, Skitty was panting and struggling to keep up. Pikachu's ears now flattened. Emily had thought her Pokémon would love being out in the fresh air, but she simply didn't understand. A young, untrained Skitty would not be fit to walk so far without rest.

Ash would have noticed. But Emily did not. She was too busy with her map issue. Ash always cared about his Pokémon first and foremost, and Emily wasn't doing such a good job living up to that.

With a scowl, Pikachu drew back on its haunches and leaped, slapping the button on Skitty's Pokéball with its tail. Skitty looked up.

"Ni," the grateful Pokémon sighed with relief as it glowed red and disappeared within the ball. Emily looked up, bewildered.

"Wh-wha?" She stammered, then quickly recovered from her surprise. "Oh. Oh, okay. Um, here, Pikachu." Emily fumbled for Pikachu's Pokéball and recalled it.

Back inside its Pokéball, Pikachu attempted to hold in its tears and failed. Clenching its tiny yellow fists and flattening its ears, tears rolled down Pikachu's face as it hiccupped and cried. Emily did not, and perhaps never would, know just how dark Pikachu's past truly was.

...

Serena's legs kicked back and forth restlessly. She didn't want to sit and do nothing, yet she had no idea what to do. Her fingers drummed on the table. She felt empty, but it was better than feeling heartbroken. All day, she was pushing away emotions and thoughts, not wanting to _feel_ at all. It wasn't any sort of comfort, and she was no closer to climbing out of the pit that was depression. But at least she wasn't sinking deeper in.

Serena felt the danger of tears once more, but quickly pushed them back, gritting her teeth and closed inching her fingers tightly into a fist. She was glad to be alone in the kitchen, so her mother would not see her.

Unable to stop herself, Serena felt a hand reach up quickly. Momentarily, her fingers brushed the scrape on her upper cheek, now a scar. To her surprise, a jolt ran through her body, beginning at the tips of her fingers and lancing throughout her entire system. And Serena was engulfed in memories.

Ash laughing with Pikachu; Ash biting back tears after a lost gym battle; Ash looking over at Serena with genuine concern in his brown eyes; Ash unconscious on the ground and Serena's intense panic; Ash reaching over and putting her hand on her shoulder - a small gesture, yet it had meant the world to Serena.

That was it. After nearly a month of holding in her tears, Serena realized she could hold them back no longer. Crying gave Serena unexpected relief. As she broke down, Serena felt herself letting out all her anger, her grief, her guilt, and her shame.

Serena didn't know what had caused the jolt or the flashback, and she was hesitant to touch the scar again. But she realized she had needed that. Because now, perhaps she would truly be able to move on.

...

Ash felt a jolt run through him.

It was like one of Pikachu's thunderbolts, he realized, but far milder. He would know; he was experienced in that field - somewhat unfortunately.

Ash's eyes were closed, but they snapped open. A strange, almost electrical charge had run through him, beginning from his upper left cheek; it was gone now, but Ash was sure it had been real. As he took in his surroundings, he realized he had a splitting headache. It made him dizzy to look around. Had he been hit on the head or something?

That's when the memories hit.

Memories of people he cared about - Misty, May, Max, Brock, Dawn, Iris, Cilan, Clemont, Bonnie, Serena, Professor Oak, his mom... and Pikachu. The memories flooded his brain, and every moment he had ever had with his friends was suddenly relived in an instant. Ash let out a breath, and as the memories subsided, he felt a strange feeling he had never felt before...

_Then _Ash recalled his current situation.

He remembered fire. And saving Pikachu. And then sudden darkness, and unbearable pain. Then he had woken somewhere strange, bound by his hands and feet, before being knocked unconscious again. He realized it must have been a long time since then. It sure felt like it.

Ash tried to move, and immediately regretted it. He let out a groan of pain. The shackles that bound his wrists and ankles cut into his skin every time he moved.

Turning his head to the side, Ash noticed the figure of a girl, somewhat younger than him, chained to the wall beside him in much a similar way. With a surprise, Ash realized who it was. Anger boiled inside him.

Her pale blue hair was a mess. Her tattered pink-and-white hat was in shreds. Her dress was torn and spattered with a red substance Ash realized was blood. She had bruises and cuts all over, and dirt marked her skin and clothes.

_Dawn._

"Dawn!" Ash hissed - or tried to. His voice was hoarse and his throat sore; the words had an unnatural sound to them, and they hurt to say.

Ash gritted his teeth. _Where the heck am I, anyway?_! He thought angrily. _Last I thought, I was dying and... And now I'm here! _

That's when it sank in.

_Oh, Mew. _Ash thought, shocked at the realization he had just come to.

The fire had certainly been no accident. It was planned; every bit of it was. He was targeted, and now they - whoever "they" was - had him. And they had Dawn, too.

Ash gritted his teeth in fury. No way they'd get away with this. If Ash's friends knew he was alive or not, Ash had no clue, but he knew he was going to get out of here. He'd do it for his friends, and for Pikachu... and for his mom, Arceus knows how _she _was faring.

Ash was going to get out of this, and he wouldn't let anyone else hurt his friends.

...

Iris's legs kicked back and forth under the table restlessly as she sat in the chair, side by side with Cilan.

"Cilan," she began tentatively. "Do you ever wonder..."

The connoisseur looked up, a curious frown on his face. "Hm?"

Iris took a deep breath. "Ash and that girl, Dawn... they... they... on the same day, and I..." Iris buried her face in her hands, unable to continue.

Cilan put a hand on he shoulder to comfort her. Iris smiled gratefully, briefly, at him.

Cilan cleared his throat, then spoke. "I... yes, Iris. I wondered about that. They are... _were _good friends, and I suppose it's quite the coincidence. I suppose it was just that; a coincidence..."

"Awfully nice coincidence," Iris muttered, then stood. "I... I need to go. Bye, Cilan."

As Cilan watched her leave, he knew he understood what she was going through. He wanted so badly to be there for her, but that was too difficult. Iris had shut everyone out since that day a month ago. She couldn't talk to anyone, he realized, without feeling the pain that was too hard for her to feel.

Cilan also suspected Iris blamed herself. Ash had gone back into the fire twice - first to save Iris, and then to save Pikachu - and that was why he... died. Cilan could understand Iris's blame on herself. He didn't agree with it one bit, but he understood it.

...

Gary's fingers traced the drawing. He was looking through Tracey's sketchbook and had come across a picture of Ash and Pikachu, along with Ash's Lapras. Gary's face was stony, revealing nothing. He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream and break something, it was so unfair. But he couldn't, because of Delia. He needed to stay strong, for her.

_Delia._ The name caused a wave of anger to roll over Gary. Just yesterday, the team of people excavating the site had confirmed that the fire was an arson. The knowledge was kept between Gary and his grandfather at first, but Delia and Tracey soon found out. And with Delia in the state that she was, Gary found himself burning with hatred at whoever had caused that fire.

Ash Ketchum was Gary's rival, but the two were still good friends. Gary's fist clenched around the item in his hand - half of a broken Pokéball, symbolic of his relationship with Ash. The relationship they used to have, at least.

The other half of the Ball was somewhere in the burnt wreckage of the house, where Ash was now. The place where Ash had died.

...

Dawn's mind felt fuzzy.

She had almost no recollection of anything after the gunshot. Her memories were blurred; she remembered her mother's panicked voice, the cries of her Piplup, and hushed, hurried voices that seemed to be talking about her. It was all in bits and pieces.

But as she awoke, Dawn had the feeling it had been quite a long time since then. How long, she had no idea. She didn't even know where she _was. _

For starters, her hands and feet were chained to a wall. She felt pretty beat up. Trying to move hurt - a _lot. _

Then Dawn heard a voice.

"Dawn!" The voice hissed. She recognized it. Struggling to turn her head, Dawn caught sight of a young boy being held similarly to the way she was. She couldn't see much detail, but there was no mistaking the person.

"A-Ash?" Dawn croaked. Her voice was scratchy and her throat felt like sandpaper. Water would have been an awfully handy thing to have at that moment. "Where..."

"Oh, thank Arceus you're awake! Listen, I don't know where we are, but I think we were kidnapped or something..."

"K-kidnapped?"

"Look, first I was dying in a burning building and the next thing I know, I'm here. I can only assume at this point."

"Dying in a... what?"

"Long story. Dawn, we need to get out of here."

"N-no need to... ugh, forget it. We probably should worry, in this sort of situation."

Ash grinned a crooked grin at Dawn, and Dawn was glad she had been able to make her friend smile. Then she froze, and the next thing she said melted the smile right off Ash's face.

"Ash," she began. "Do... do our friends and families even know we're alive?"

As the thought that his friends might think he was dead sank in, Ash turned pale. "Oh... oh, Mew... Mom, and Misty and Brock and everyone and..." Ash gritted his teeth. "And Pikachu..."

"Mom," Dawn murmured. "And Brock and Kenny and Zoey and... Piplup..." Tears began to well up in Dawn's eyes. "We have to get out of here." Dawn's jaw tightened and she tried to struggle against the chains only to cry out in pain.

"Oh!" She yelled as the metal cut sharply into her wrists. She hung her head, utterly helpless. "Guess there's not much I can do, huh?" She turned her head so she was no longer facing Ash, and tears began rolling down her cheeks.

Ash looked over at Dawn, and anger boiled inside him. He thought of all his friends, and his mom and Professor Oak, and that anger turned to fury.

"We'll get out of here, Dawn," he promised through gritted teeth. "We will. We have to."

_Pikachu, _Ash thought. _I'll find ya, buddy. I promise. _

_... _

_Pikachu, I'll find ya, buddy. I promise. _

The words echoed in Pikachu's mind. It sat up in the Pokéball, ears twitching.

Had it imagined that? Or was that Ash's voice? Pikachu's cheeks sparked at the thought of Ash. It _had_ been Ash's voice, Pikachu was sure. Anticipation began to well in Pikachu's chest. When Ash said something, he meant it. When he made a promise, he never broke it. Of this Pikachu was sure.

And for the first time in almost a month, Pikachu felt some form of hope inside.

...

"Boss!"

Giovanni looked up. It was Petrel.

"What is it?" He muttered absentmindedly.

"Boss, Sir, we have detected brain activity in the two captives. They seem to be gaining consciousness."

Instantly, Giovanni was alert. "What?!" He quickly regained his composure, but was nonetheless a bit shaken. "You have cameras monitoring them, yes?"

Petrol nodded and gestured for Giovanni to follow, thus he did. Upon arriving at the screen displaying the camera view, Giovanni's fists tightened. The girl was crying, and the boy looked furious.

"Very well then. Have them locked into the compartments in Level B6. It is high time we begin this plan of mine."

...

"Oledale Town sure is great!" May commented, her mouth full of banana bread. She and Max were enjoying a hearty dinner and dessert at the Pokémon Center in Oledale Town, and May was certainly enjoying their catering.

Max just smirked. "You're only saying that because of the food!"

"Zu, zurill!" ZuZu agreed merrily. Max laughed and reached up to tickle the little Pokémon gently.

Suddenly May perked up and pulled out her Xtransceiver, hearing that she'd received a message. "Oh! It's Drew. He'll be here in ten minutes or so, he says."

Max grinned. "Awesome! A new traveling companion. You know, this is just like when - " Suddenly, Max froze up, as too many painful memories began to surface. "When... when..." Max trailed off. His face was white, and he looked as if he had just seen a ghost.

May smiled sadly at her brother. She reached across the table and gave his arm a loving squeeze. Max visibly relaxed a bit and nodded weakly at his sister, but he was still shaken.

Ash had left behind a lot to deal with for May and her brother.

...

"Practically the same day, hm?"

"Yeah! And you know, I heard some news report they did where they asked witnesses about what had happened, and one guy saw a shadowed figure or something in some alleyway near where Dawn was shot..."

Cilan nodded, deep lines forming on his forehead as he considered what Iris was saying.

"Well," he began, "The fire was certainly arson at... _his _house... And then she was shot, so someone had to have shot her... And then the hospital fire was identified as arson..." Ash's and Dawn's names stuck in Cilan's throat and he couldn't say them, thus he used pronouns. As he got to thinking about it, he looked up at Iris.

"We both know neither of their... _deaths_... were any kind of accident. And they were both good friends, and both killed within a 24-hour time frame. Iris, I've no evidence, but this is looking very suspicious." Cilan took a deep breath and looked Iris in the eye before continuing. "I think we may be unraveling the beginnings of a conspiracy."

...

**Me: That was fun to write! **

**Cilan: It's INVESTIGATION TIME! **

**Dawn: Oh, great, Kit. You've got him started. He's almost as bad as Brock when he's like this! **

**Cilan: Let's consider the evidence here and... mhm... **

**Brock: Did I hear my name?! PRETTY-GIRL-O-METER... 100 PERCENT ACCURACY! HELLO, MISS! **

**Iris: Ack! **

**Me: Quit hitting on Iris! This fanfic is supposed to have WishfulShipping! **

**Max: I think this is my cue... **

**Misty: No, mine! **

**Croagunk: Cro-o-ooaaa... **

**Me: This is... insane. Sorry, readers, but these guys are impossible to shut up. **


	8. Chapter Eight: A Rival's Regret

**Disclaimer: **

**I may say I own Pokémon **

**when it's not true, **

**but I do give credit **

**where credit is due. So, thanks to Typhlosion8 for the "Detective Time" Cilan passage! **

**Gary: You're almost as good as Gramps at poetry! **

**Dawn: I bet **_**you're **_**better, Gary! **

**Gary: Ah, you're a fan of mine? I humbly admit I really don't have so many... **

**Misty *grumbling*: Says the guy who had a pack of cheerleaders following him all over Kanto. Conceited, much?**

**Me: Okay, okay! **_**Anyway,**_** our**** last author's note was too long, so let's just get on with the story before this one gets out of hand! **

**... **

Cilan whipped out a small cap and spun a magnifying glass around in his hand, which he had pulled out from a secret pocket in his vest. He'd told Iris that he had stopped doing this, but how could he resist with such a juicy case waiting for him to discover its secrets?

"Iris... It's detective time!"

The purple haired girl just sighed in frustration; this was a battle she would never win.

Attempting to shake off her annoyance, Iris asked a question. "Cilan, when people die mysteriously, they're supposed to investigate the evidence and the scene and stuff like that, right?"

Cilan nodded, tapping his chin authoritatively. "Hmm, yes..."

"Well, did they investigate that stuff yet?"

Cilan frowned. "I... can't be sure, but... well, I do know they didn't find the... bodies..."

Iris winced when he said that, and Cilan cursed himself. What a terrible word choice... Iris was upset by all this already, anyway! Trying to "fix it", Cilan reached over and gave Iris's arm a gentle squeeze. Iris gave him a weak smile in return.

But as he did this, Cilan's mind was whirring. That was one more thing that the cases had in common. And if they never actually _found_ Ash and Dawn... never found evidence that they were really _dead..._ well, it sparked some hope inside Cilan to think of that. Hope that maybe there was another outcome of this whole situation.

...

Drew felt fresh after his shower. He was standing in front of the large mirror that hung on the wall above his dresser, now fully dressed. As he combed his grassy colored hair, Drew heard May open the door connecting their rooms. They were staying at the Pokémon Center in Rustboro City for May's first contest of the season, Drew's second, and Max's first Gym battle. Max and May were in one room, Drew was in the other, and their rooms connected via a door.

"Hey, Drew!" May's cheerful voice popped up behind Drew. Drew felt something odd in his stomach - maybe a flutter of some sort. He shook it off.

"Hey, May," he responded simply. She, meanwhile, was skipping about the room, gushing her excitement over the contest and her brother's Gym battle. She mentioned moves, combinations, strategies, and such - and, at one point, how hungry she was.

_She can never shut up, can she? _Drew thought with a smirk. _Guess I kind of like it, though. That's what makes her so... May. _

"Well," Drew announced. "I suppose we had better get a move on, if you're so hungry?"

Max stepped into the room and nodded eagerly. "Yeah!" He chirped. "Isn't this Pokémon Center supposed to serve really great food?"

May perked up at the mention of food. "Really? Well, what are we waiting for, then?!" And before either of the boys could blink an eye, May was out the door and racing down the hall to the dining area.

"My sister," Max stated, "Can eat like a Munchlax."

_Your sister,_ Drew thought, _Sure is cute when she acts like that._ Then Drew blinked, shocked he'd thought that. Had he just thought May was... _cute_?!

"Drew, are you okay?" Max looked up at the older coordinator worriedly.

"Y-yeah," Drew lied. "I guess I'm fine."

...

Trip hated himself.

He had treated Ash like dirt. Like he was nothing. Like he was just a waste of time, just another hopeless guy who wouldn't quit.

And now that very guy was dead.

What's more, he died saving his Pikachu's life! Ash had shown what true courage was. What a _true _bond with your Pokémon was. Trip was getting angrier and angrier as he thought about it. He flopped down on his bed in frustration.

He would never live up to Ash; Trip knew he wouldn't. He could've been great friends with Ash, but instead, Trip had been his rival - not to mention he had been pretty mean to Ash about it. And Trip regretted every terrible word he had said to that raven-haired trainer.

Sure, they had sort of become friends after the Unova League... but Trip couldn't get over all he had said and done to Ash.

What was amazing about Ash, though, was that he didn't take Trip's snide comments badly. He brushed them off and kept going, kept challenging Trip until he won. The guy was really amazing, and yet Trip failed to see that until it was to late.

After the Unova League, Trip had wanted a rematch with Ash. He had wanted revenge, in a way, for Ash beating him so early on in the Unova League. Now, he would never get that revenge - and Ash would never get the apology Trip so badly needed to give.

Trip never thought he would feel this way about Ash. Then again, he never thought Ash would die.

...

Emily clapped her hands together in excitement. "There it is! That's Cerulean City!"

She was looking down at a beautiful city with a lovely fountain in the middle and a large blue building with a Dewgong on it. Seeing the large building, Emily assumed it must be the Gym.

Emily reached back to her belt and tossed up Skitty's and Pikachu's Pokéballs. Pikachu landed in a battle stance, while Skitty tumbled out somewhat carelessly.

Pikachu wasn't going to wallow in depression any longer. He knew Ash was out there, never giving up, searching for Pikachu. So Pikachu wouldn't give up, either.

"Okay, guys! Back in your Pokéballs now! Let's go have a battle!"

Pikachu's ears twitched, hearing Emily's words. That Pokéball had been a way to escape the world, but Pikachu didn't need it anymore. He dodged the red light sent out as Emily attempted to recall him, and shook his head. "Pika!"

Emily blinked in surprise. "Well, I... I guess you don't _have _to go in the ball, Pikachu. Okay, let's go have a Gym battle!"

As Emily and Pikachu set off for Cerulean, Emily had no idea that Pikachu's refusal to go in the Pokéball was the start of something much, much bigger.

...

Misty sat by the pool, her bare feet dangling in the water, as Gyarados and Goldeen played in the water. There were a lot of other Pokémon besides those two, of course, but they were all napping in their Pokéballs or chilling underwater.

"Misty!"

The redhead looked up to see Violet, her sister. "What's up, Violet?"

"You've got a challenger."

"Really? Oh, okay. Tell them to come in. I'll be ready to battle in a sec."

Meanwhile, just outside the Gym, sitting beside Emily on the doorstep, Pikachu found itself buried in memories. Misty had played a huge part in Ash's and Pikachu's adventures, but Pikachu didn't find itself crying from nostalgia. Ash wasn't dead, and Pikachu knew it. All it had to do was keep moving forward, keep fighting, and Ash would find Pikachu again. It had to happen.

...

Serena stared into her hand. In it was a photograph of her, Clemont, Bonnie, the Gym Leader Corina, Corina's Lucario, and... Ash.

Serena found herself staring at that picture a hundred times a day. As she folded it up and slid it into her pocket once more, Serena told herself to keep moving on through the day. She was doing it for Ash. After all, he was the one who had told her, "Never give up until the end!" Wasn't he?

...

Ash heard a _click,_ and the shackles binding his arms and legs broke open.

He tumbled to the ground and lay there, too exhausted to get up. Dawn fell to the ground next. Slowly, Ash struggled onto his hands and knees, and tried to help Dawn to do the same.

"Who's there?" Ash shouted aloud. Surely there was someone there, right? They wouldn't be let go without someone to supervise them if they had been kidnapped, and Ash was fairly certain they had been.

"I am." A steely cold voice emerged from the shadows, and a shady figure stepped out. Ash heard a shot, and something hit him _hard _in the arm. He just had time to realize that he'd heard that voice somewhere before, when everything went black.

...

"Gary," Professor Oak inquired, newspaper in hand, "You remember how the Viridian City Gym has been closed down for years now?"

Gary nodded dully. The half a Pokéball was still clutched tightly in his fist.

"Well, they happen to be holding gym leader tryouts there tomorrow at 11 a.m. I was thinking you might be interested." The Professor suggested.

Gary perked up at the mention of Gym Leader tryouts. "I suppose," he conceded. "That might not be a bad idea, Gramps." Maybe this was the perfect way to take his mind off of his regret, his anger, and his hatred - directed mainly at himself.

That was when Delia walked in. She gave Gary a weak smile, and that relieved him somewhat. If Delia was willing to smile, forced or not, it meant she was beginning to move forward.

"I think you should, Gary," Delia said quietly. "And I want to come with you to watch."

...

"Target 3 identified. Proceed with mission?"

"Roger."

"Have you identified Target 4?"

"Yes."

"Are you ready?"

"Roger that."

"When?"

"Tomorrow afternoon. Soon, all the world will know."

...

**Ooh... suspenseful, right? There's more action in the next chapter! You guys excited? I sure am! Anyhow, see how I added in Ty8's chapter there? If you've got an idea or even a chapter you want to see in this story, just review and tell me! _Or _you can review just to tell me how awesome I am. :D Kidding! Anyway, thanks for reading and REVIEWS MAKE ME HAPPY AND CHAPTERS COME FASTER WHEN I AM HAPPY! **


	9. Chapter Nine: A Surprise in Cerulean

**Disclaimer: ~doesn't that say everything I need to say? **

**Me: Whoo! Second update in one day! **

**Ash: Hey, Kit, can I kiss Serena in the story yet? **

**Me: No. Shush. **

**Ash: Aw, come on - **

**Me: Go play Pokémon games! I'm trying to write! **

**Ash: **_**Fine...**_

...

"Max, how will you battle at the Rustboro Gym?" May asked, her mouth full of banana bread. "You only have one Pokémon - your Azurill. And you haven't even trained it yet!"

Max frowned. "Good point," he acknowledged his sister. "I'll just have to train Azurill now and catch two more Pokémon today! Then I can battle tomorrow for sure."

"You'd better get busy," Drew pointed out. "That's a lot to do in one day."

"I can do it!" Max assured Drew. Then he rushed out the door of the Pokémon Center, leaving behind his half-eaten breakfast. May slid his plate over to her and ate what was left.

"Okay!" May announced when she had finished Max's breakfast as well as her own. "We had better do some training, too!"

Drew nodded. _Max sure reminds me of Ash,_ he thought. He winced. The raven-haired boy had become very close with May, and his death was the reason May had decided to stop competing in contests. Drew was glad he and Max had gotten her back into it - in fact, Ash seemed to be the last thing on her mind. His death had hit her hard, but she took it well.

Drew was proud of May for that. She didn't dwell on the bad stuff, and while Ash's death had sent her into a state of depression for a little less than a month, she pulled herself out.

"May... you really are an amazing girl," Drew said quietly, so only she could hear. May turned to him, surprised, and Drew immediately went red in the face. _What the heck did I say that for?! _He chastised himself.

"Th-thanks," May mumbled in response to Drew's comment. Was it just him, or was she blushing?

...

"So, ZuZu!" Max said eagerly. "What Pokémon d'you think we should catch first?"

"Zu!" ZuZu responded. "Zu, zurill zu!" It hopped off of Max's head and bounced off from some trees. Max laughed and raced after his new friend.

Max stopped when he saw ZuZu perched atop a branch about ten feet off the ground, just above a napping Treecko.

Max's eyes widened. He had wanted a Treecko since he was little - in fact, it was the Pokémon he'd have chosen as his starter, had he not found ZuZu!

"Whoa," Max breathed. He could see that ZuZu wanted to battle. The little Water-Type was crouched in what appeared to be a battle stance. Max nodded to the little Azurill and whispered, "Okay, use Pound!"

Along with Bubble beam and Water gun, ZuZu knew Pound and Tackle. Bubble beam and Water gun wouldn't be too effective, considering that Treecko was a Grass-Type, so Pound was a good move choice.

ZuZu yelled out defiantly and leaped into the air, raising up its tail, which began to glow. The bubble-like tail slammed onto Treecko, hard, and it woke up immediately. "Tree!" Treecko cried out as it was slammed backward. It stumbled, weakened considerably by the attack, and Max saw the perfect opportunity.

"Go, Pokéball!" Max yelled, as he chucked the red-and-white ball at the Pokémon. Treecko looked up in surprise as it was hit, and it disappeared in a red flash of light.

The Pokéball wobbled for a moment, and then there was a _ding! _and the Treecko was caught! Max grabbed the Pokéball and leaped into the air, holding it up. "I just caught a Treecko!" He cried.

"Zu, zurill!" ZuZu cheered.

_Just like Ash and Pikachu,_ Max thought. His spirits were immediately dampened by the thought, but he shook it off. "I can't think about them," he muttered aloud. "I'll win this Gym battle, and I'll do it for Ash."

...

Misty scanned the rack of Pokéballs. _Let's see,_ she thought. _I'll go with Gyarados, Kingdra, and... _Misty picked up a Pokéball with a sly smile. _This one,_ she thought. _My secret weapon._

As Misty stood up, she saw Violet guiding the challenging trainer to the pool, which served as the battlefield. Misty granted the girl a smile. She had golden hair, dusted with brown, and deep chocolate eyes. Misty decided she looked like she'd put up a good fight, but this was probably her first Gym battle.

Then Misty looked down.

There, walking alongside the girl, was a _Pikachu._ And a very familiar one, at that.

The girl noticed Misty's shock. "Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. Misty just stared for a moment, then nodded slowly.

"Y-yeah," Misty lied. "I'm fine. So, anyway, I'm Misty, and I'm the Gym Leader here in Cerulean City!"

The girl grinned. "I'm Emily, and I'm here to win a Gym battle." Then Emily looked down at Pikachu and added, "Oh! Um, and this is my Pikachu." Pikachu gave Misty what was sort of a knowing look, and that confirmed it in Misty's mind. But she had to be sure...

"Emily," Misty said carefully, "Where did you get that Pikachu?"

"Oh! Pikachu was my starter. I got it from Professor Oak. I dunno why it won't go in its Pokéball, though. It's kind of weird, huh?" Emily chatted.

_Not for that Pikachu,_ Misty thought. _That's not weird at all._

"Yeah, I guess it it weird." Misty lied. "Anyhow, let's get this battle started!" She expanded a Pokéball and tossed it up and down in one hand. "You ready?"

"You betcha I'm ready!" Emily pumped her fist in the air. The two girls walked over to the battlefield. Misty tossed her Pokéball into the air. "Go, Kingdra!"

"My first Pokémon is... Skitty!" Emily cried, tossing another Ball into the air. As the Pokémon came out in glowing flashes of light, Daisy, as the ref, announced:

"This is a battle between Emily, the challenger from Viridian City, and Misty, Gym Leader here in Cerulean! The Cascade Badge is at risk! This will be a three-on-three battle, and only the challenger may make substitutions! Battle, be - "

"Wait!" Emily yelped suddenly. "I, uh... I only have two Pokémon with me."

Daisy huffed. "Fine! This will be a _two-on-two _battle, and only the challenger may make substitutions! Let the battle begin!"

Misty was disappointed that she'd only get to use two Pokémon, but oh, well. Skitty was pretty weak. Kingdra defeated it easily with a powerful Hydro pump. Pikachu, however, was Emily's next Pokémon, and it wasn't so easy to beat. It was powerful and had a type advantage.

"Pikachu, Electro ball!"

"Kingdra, tackle!"

Misty's Kingdra didn't stand a chance. In an instant, it was out cold.

"Return, Kingdra. Thank you. Okay..." Against Pikachu, Misty knew her Gyarados was in trouble. Despite the fact that Gyarados was much larger, Misty knew very well Pikachu's power. So, she supposed, it was secret weapon time.

"Go, Psyduck!" Misty yelled, tossing her Ball into the air. Psyduck leaped out, holding its head, appearing clueless. Emily blinked, clearly shocked that a Gym Leader would choose such an apparently useless Pokémon. She shrugged it off, though.

"Okay, Pikachu, Electro ball!"

"Dodge it, Psyduck!"

In a flash, Psyduck was out of the way. Emily was surprised, and Pikachu even more so - considering that Pikachu had previously met Psyduck. It wasn't fast, it wasn't smart, and it wasn't powerful.

"See, Emily," Misty called to the young girl, "What a new trainer doesn't know is that special training can make a normally weak, stupid Pokémon into the strongest there is! Psyduck, Confusion!"

Pikachu was slammed onto the ceiling and dropped to the water with Confusion. It hit with a huge splash and a cry of "Pika!" but managed to clamber onto one of the floating platforms and stand, battle-ready once more.

Emily narrowed her eyes, and then she had an idea. "Pikachu, quick attack! Knock Psyduck into the water!"

Pikachu launched itself at Psyduck so fast, there was no time for it to dodge. It was knocked back into the water.

"Ha!" Laughed Misty. "You realize Psyduck has an advantage into the water?"

Emily grinned slyly, taking Misty aback. "Okay, now Pikachu... put your tail in the water and use Thunderbolt!"

Misty's eyes widened. "Psyduck, quick, out of the water!" But it was too late. Misty heard a cry of _Psyyyyyyy!_ And Psyduck was rocketed out of the water in a huge explosion. "Psyduck!" Misty wailed.

Psyduck fell back down onto a floating platform with a _thud._ Misty could see Emily grinning, sure she'd won. But Psyduck didn't go down that easily.

As the Duck Pokémon stood up, Emily stared in shock, as did Pikachu. "My Psyduck's pretty strong, huh?" Misty said challengingly. Emily scowled.

"All right, catch Psyduck off guard! Iron Tail!"

Psyduck looked up to see the glowing metal tail slam down on its head. "Pssyyyyy!"

"Now Electro ball! Let's get this over with!" As Psyduck was holding its head in agony, the ball of electricity shot at it...

"Energy Ball, Psyduck!"

Psyduck's own ball of energy flew at Pikachu...

The two attacks collided in an explosion. When the smoke cleared, both Pokémon were still standing. Then Psyduck wobbled. It cried out and collapsed.

"Psyduck!" Misty yelled, hopping over platforms to reach her Pokémon. "I guess it was just to much for you, huh?" Misty gathered Psyduck into her arms and recalled it, and it disappeared in a flash of light. Misty then turned to Emily.

"Hey, nice job there, Emily!" Misty congratulated her. Lily walked in with a pointing bit of metal in her hand. She presented it to Emily. "This is, like, the Cascade Badge!" Lily said cheerfully.

Misty smiled at Emily. "You earned it." Then her smile faded slightly. "Can I... See your Pikachu for a sec?"

Emily took the badge and stared at it in awe for a moment. She turned to Misty, surprised at the question. "Y-yeah. Hold on a second." Emily hurriedly put the badge in her badge case and then called Pikachu over. "Hey! Misty wants to see you, I think."

Pikachu perked up and bounded over. It smiled up at Misty and she rubbed its head playfully. "Hey, Pikachu!" Misty said cheerfully. She picked up Pikachu in her arms. Emily looked as if she was going to object, but Pikachu gave a happy "Chaaaa!" and rubbed its cheek against her. Emily blinked. _That's weird..._

"Hey," Emily questioned. "How come Pikachu isn't using Thunderbolt on you right now? Do you... know each other?"

Misty blinked. "I... uh... well, no." She said quickly. "I guess I'm just... good with Pokémon or something." She then whispered into Pikachu's fur, "Pikachu, tell me what you need to tell me..." She had seen the look Pikachu had given her, and knew it had something to say.

Pikachu looked up, and its brown eyes locked on Misty's green ones. "Pikapi." It said solemnly, and Misty understood immediately.

She had heard from Professor Oak about Pikachu's depression. Upon seeing this Pikachu, she'd known it was Ash's, and it seemed somewhat anxious, yet not horribly depressed. Now, Misty understood why.

Pikachu's look and tone told her that there was hope. More so, the little Mouse Pokémon had clearly conveyed a message Misty desperately needed to hear: _Ash was alive._

Staring, shocked, at the little Pokémon, Misty could hardly breathe. Pikachu leaped out of her arms and stepped over to Emily, and Misty nodded slowly at Pikachu, showing she had understood. After Emily left - clearly confused, but at least she didn't ask any questions - that shock melted into uncontrollable elation. Misty felt as if she were flying.

If anyone would know, Pikachu would. And Pikachu clearly _did _know, so Misty believed the little yellow Pokémon with all of her heart.

Ash Ketchum was _alive._ And Misty knew it. Every bit of Misty's mind, body, and soul believed that Ash was alive.

...

_My first badge! This is awesome!_ Emily thought. She pulled out her PokéGear and typed a message, adding a picture of her and Pikachu, with Emily holding the Cascade Badge, which she'd taken just after she left the Gym. Then she hit _send._

"Wow," she whispered aloud to herself. "He's going to be so excited!"

...

When Ash woke up, the first thing he thought was, _Man, I'm hungry. _

The second was, _Where in the Distortion World am I?! _

And the third was, _Oh. _

He remembered now - the shackles, him coming to the conclusion of being kidnapped, the steely voice in the shadows, the dart hitting him in the arm. They - whoever _they _was; Ash wasn't sure of anything at this point - must have knocked him and Dawn out with those darts so they could bring them _here._

It was a cramped, dark little room. The floor was cold, hard and damp. The walls weren't much different. As his eyes adjusted to the light - or rather, the lack thereof - Ash could make out a small opening in the room that probably served as a door. However, it was barred shut and there were probably twenty-four different padlocks on the thing, not to mention an alarm system. Ash couldn't see the alarm system, but there had to be one.

Then Ash noticed a figure lying near him. Ash leaped to his feet and raced over to her. It was Dawn. Not that Ash expected anyone else, but he was glad it was her. If he and Dawn were separated, that would make this whole thing one heck of a lot worse.

Ash shook her gently. "Dawn!" He hissed. "Dawn, get up! Dawn!"

As Dawn sat up groggily and started to come to her senses, Ash could have sworn he heard something.

_Pika! Pikapi! _

Ash blinked. That was _Pikachu's_ voice, but...

Ash shook off his confusion. He knew that Pikachu was out there, encouraging him to keep going, to get out and get back to his friends.

That was when the lights came on.

Ash blinked, his eyes now having to readjust. "Hey!" He yelled. "Who's there?!"

Then it was that voice again - that steely calm male voice; the voice of the shady figure. The voice only chuckled in response.

"What are you doing to us?!" Dawn yelled. "Let us go!"

"Oh, my darling girl," the voice taunted. "Havent you realized? You have been kidnapped. You are a big part of my plan, and I am by no means letting you go."

...

Trip thumbed through his texts on his Xtransceiver. As he did so, a new message popped up on his screen. Oh... it was from _her._ Trip smiled warmly. Texts from her were always a treat. She didn't text anyone except him, ever, unless her parents needed to get a hold of her, and whenever she did text him it was always a treat. He didn't love anyone more than he did her, and he guessed (or at least hoped) it was the same vice versa.

Trip expected a little joke or a funny picture or something like that. Maybe it was an update on her journey. Trip's smile widened as he read the message.

_1st badge in kanto super excited! plus I got a pikachu 4 starter! _

Trip was surprised that she'd gotten a Pikachu. After all she was from Kanto, so...

Trip's eyes widened. _From Kanto. A Pikachu for a starter. That's... so familiar..._ But Trip shook off his thoughts. It was too late for that now. And regretful memories wouldn't make him feel any better...

That was when Trip saw the picture she'd attached to the message. He went a little bit pale. There was his little cousin, Emily, proudly holding the Cascade Badge... and there was a Pikachu in that picture. But it wasn't just any Pikachu.

No, Trip was fairly certain that was _Ash's _Pikachu in that picture. And as he typed a casual reply, Trip didn't say anything out of the ordinary to Emily or convey his shock - she clearly was oblivious to that Pikachu's past. He just typed, _gr8 job! im so proud! keep knockin em dead emily, _and then hit _send. _

Then Trip took a moment to collect his thoughts. What was Ash's Pikachu doing with a newbie trainer? What was that old Professor Oak thinking?

...

"Electivire, use Thunderpunch!" Gary yelled. Electivire raised its fist and electricity began to gather up in it, then slammed that fist down onto a rock. Normally, an Electric-Type attack such as Thunderpunch wouldn't have had much effect on a rock. However, said rock shattered under Electivire's fist despite the move type, proving how strong Electivire really was - and how much time Gary had spent training it.

Blastoise was also under special training, as were all of Gary's Pokémon. They were strong enough to pass the Gym Leader tryouts later that day, and Gary knew it, yet he wanted to be sure that they were at their best. Besides, it helped him concentrate on something a bit more positive than what he'd otherwise likely be thinking about.

Gary checked his Pokétch, which he had bought on a whim while in Sinnoh. It ended up coming very much in handy. The time was 9:32 a.m., which meant just an hour and a half until the tryouts began. Gary smiled - and that was a thing he rarely allowed himself to do, especially as of late.

His grandfather was probably right in thinking that being a Gym Leader would be good for him.

...

Lance paced the room. He was thinking about that boy, Ash Ketchum. The one whom he had been friends with. It wasn't for so long, of course, but they had known each other. Now that the boy was dead, well, it was a bit of a shock to Lance at first. Since they hadn't known each other especially well, Lance was not terribly heartsick, but it gave him grief to know that such a young boy had been killed. Of course, when the fire was discovered to be arson, it made things all the worse - now Lance had a criminal on his hands. The boy crossed his mind quite a lot, and he happened to be occupying Lance's thoughts right now.

Then the phone rang, shattering the Champion's thoughts. As the annoyingly cheerful voice rang out - _Ring ring ring, Ring ring ring, Phone call! Phone call! _- Lance stalked over and picked up. The screen flashed on and Cynthia's image showed on the screen.

"Cynthia." Lance acknowledged. He was surprised, but he took care not to show it. Lance never let anyone think he was caught off guard, providing a better political image of himself for sure.

"Lance," Cynthia said worriedly. "I've been meaning to tell you this for a long time... well, you heard about Ash Ketchum's death, right?"

"Yes, Cynthia. It was all over the media for two weeks, not to mention it's my region so I would probably know something of it." Lance replied, irritated.

"Okay, okay, but, well... there was a girl, Dawn Berlitz. She was shot and killed the night before Ash died, and..." Cynthias's voice cracked slightly as she spoke. Lance raised an eyebrow.

"Did you know her?" He inquired.

Cynthia nodded. "I - yes, we were good friends, actually." She said, biting her lip. "The thing is, those two were good friends as well. They traveled together for just over a year. And then, they both... died... writhing 12 hours of each other, so... well, isn't that... odd?"

This time, Lance could not hide his surprise. He slammed a hand down on the table, and his face conveyed utter shock. "_What _did you say?!"

...

**Hi! **

**So, like my cliff-hanger? Now, don't get mad, that's just the way a story works! Here's a story's typical aspects: there's a nice big hill, a steep drop, then a slow incline, a couple of potholes, lots of sharp turns, and sometimes a cliff. So expect that and, again, don't get mad! **

**Anyway, Ash and friends are busy playing Pokémon Y (uh oh. I think I hear some yelling and smashing stuff. Ash probably just lost a Gym battle for the seventh time in a row with his Level 5 Froakie...) so I'm hoping we won't end up with yet another hectic conversation between those guys. So, yeah. If you were looking forward to that, well, maybe next time. **

**Oh, hold on, Gary just told me he... what?! Okay, never mind, I'm not putting that in. The clean version is that he doesn't really like this story. Well, poo you, Gary and all the others who wanna flame! You yelling at me IN ALL CAPS LIKE THIS won't change a thing - it's my story! **

**So, let's see. Um... REVIEWS MAKE ME HAPPY! And I think that's it, so I hope you enjoyed this! Another update is on the way tomorrow, I promise! (Or maybe even again today!) **

**(And maybe if you review, guys, I'll make the shipping get going sooner in the story. Maybe Ash can kiss Serena like he apparently really wants to. If you don't, I make no promises. But, I mean, 1,564 views and only 11 reviews?! Are you kidding me?! Talk, guys, TALK! And thanks to you guys who _do _review. Y'all are awesome. :D) **


	10. Chapter 10: Serena Loses Control

**Disclaimer: Argh, I am so tired of having to say I don't own Pokémon! **

**Ash: It's not that bad. Here, give me the computer... **

**Me: Hey! **

**I do not own Pokémon **

**I do not own Pokémon **

**I do not own Pokémon **

**I do n **

**Me: ASH! QUIT! Give the computer back! **

**Ash: That really wasn't so bad, Kit. You should let ME be the one to say it from now on! **

**Me: Ha, ha, very funny. **

**... **

**MORE A/N! **

**I am soooooooooo sorry I haven't been updating! It's just that, well, MY COMPUTER HAPPENED TO BREAK DOWN AND THIS DUDE WAS FIXING IT AND SO I COULDNT CONTINUE MAH STORIES UNTIL IT WAS FIXED. *.* **

**Well, three questions have been asked in reviews. They are: Who are Targets 3 and 4? What is Giovanni's plan? And why does Serena seem so much calmer about Ash's death than any of his other friends? **

**All of these questions are to be answered... NOW! **

**... **

Lance sat a the head of the long table. He, along with the four other Champions of the Napaj nation, were sitting in one of the conference rooms in the IPG building - Indigo Plateau G-Men Building. After a brief investigation by Cynthia and himself, resulting in the confirmation that there was no coincidence involved with the deaths of the young trainers, Lance decided to call all of the Champions together.

Alder was looking right at Lance. His usually cheery face was stony cold. Lance didn't call meetings like this often; when he did, it meant that things were really serious.

Steven was giving Lance a knowing look. Steven, having become Champion at around the same time as Lance had, and having worked together with Lance for about ten years now, had an uncanny way of knowing what Lance was thinking quite often. Apparently, this was such a case.

Cynthia stared into her black coffee, eyes burning with cold fury. Cynthia knew all too well what was going on, as did Lance.

And, finally, Diantha. Catching Lance's eye, she cocked an eyebrow. Her look conveyed the message quite clearly: _Let's get this started already._

Lance took a deep breath.

"You all have been gathered here because something has come to my and Cynthia's attention," he began. "You did hear about the deaths of Dawn Berlitz and Ash Ketchum, yes?"

The names caused several strange reactions - at least, they seemed strange to Lance. Steven looked angry, and as if he were holding back tears. Cynthia just looked away. Alder's expression was one of grief, and Diantha's gaze was stormy. Lance was unsettled by the expressions on all of the Champions' faces - why were they reacting in such a way? Was it possible they had _all _known those two children?

Lance shook it off and continued. "Cynthia and I have discovered something quite... interesting." He stood and stalked over to a pile of papers lying on the ground nearby. He held one up for all to see: it was a handprint.

The print was in black paint, and there were a few areas where the paint seemed to have dripped a bit. This caught the attention of everyone in the room. Lance heard Steven give a short gasp.

"This is the symbol of the Black Hands of Team Rocket." Lance said gravely. "We found marks identical to this one in two places: an alleyway near where Dawn was shot and a shadowed figure was seen hiding in, and one near the rubble of Ash's house. It has become clear to me that this was only the beginning of something much, much larger. We may have the beginnings of a war on our hands."

...

Serena looked down at her feet. Her arms were stiff at her sides as she walked up to the door and knocked, three times exactly.

It was only a few moments before the door opened abruptly, and there was the bright face of someone Serena knew quite well: Shauna. She and Serena had become good friends at Professor Sycamore's Pokémon Summer Camp. Now, seeing Serena, Shauna's smiled seemed to flicker, but she quickly recovered and ushered Serena in.

Serena saw it, though. That momentary flicker of uncertainty. And Serena knew why Shauna's face had shown that. She had learned, by now, that people often just didn't know when faced with someone who was grieving.

"So," Shauna began carefully, as soon as they were settled on the couch in her living room. "What brings you here, Serena?"

"I... I wanted to... to talk." Serena admitted. She hadn't been willing to talk to anyone before. It caused her too much pain. For so long, she had been avoiding any inkling of feeling. She felt like, if she was going to break down (and she was definitely going to), Shauna would be the person to do it in front of.

Serena didn't expect it to be so hard, though.

In a moment, she just let all of her feelings loose. She started to talk and couldn't stop. About Ash, about how wonderful he was, about her crush on him, about her grief and her self-blame, about everything. Tears began to flow down Serena's cheeks, and before she knew it, she was sobbing out every word. She hiccupped and gasped and just kept talking until she couldn't anymore. Shauna watched and listened, nodding in understanding.

Then she said the worst thing possible.

"I... I know how you feel."

Serena's grief turned to fury. She looked up at Shauna, fire in her eyes, tears glistening on her cheeks. There was too much bottled up inside Serena. She had put all her feelings away for so long, and her grief see me to "subside" - but that wasn't what really happened. Serena had just not let herself feel it. And now, all that bottled up fury and grief was bursting out. Serena had finally opened the cap on her bottle.

"No!" She screamed. "_No! _You _don't _understand, and you _never _will!" Serena shrieked at Shauna. "You don't know how it is to lose someone you love! You don't know how it is to have the chance to love someone, and then watch it be snatched away forever! _You will never understand!" _Serena stood up and slammed her fists on the coffee table. Shauna drew back, terrified. Angry tears flowed down Serena's face and splashed her dress and the ground by her feet. Unable to bear it anymore, Serena charged out of the room, and out the door. By now, gray clouds were gathering in the sky, and rain began to pour down. Serena was soon soaked, but she didn't care. She just kept running. She found woods and ran through the trees and the brush, thorns and sharp branches pricking her skin and tearing her dress. Finally, Serena stumbled and fell to her knees. She screamed in agony, and more tears kept coming. Serena couldn't take it. She couldn't take this grief.

But she couldn't keep it inside any longer.

...

Max lifted the Pokéball triumphantly. "Yes!" He cried. I caught a Poochyena!"

ZuZu cheered and leaped into the air. Max grinned and looked down at his two Pokéballs. "Now I can battle at the Rustboro Gym! All, right!"

About an hour later, Max was standing at the doors of the Gym. He pushed them open, and May helped him. Then he, his sister, and Drew stepped into the Rustboro Gym.

It was an exciting battle, for sure. Max's Azurill, Treecko, and Poochyena were up against a Graveler, Steelix, and Onix. Poochyena was knocked out almost immediately by the Onix, but not before it landed a pretty powerful Bite and Scratch. Treecko finished it with Leaf Blade and Energy Ball. The Steelix took a couple Nightshade attacks, each more powerful than the last, before Max exchanged it for ZuZu. The little Water-Type got a Water gun and Bubble attack in, and the Steel is was down for the count. Now Max had only to defeat the Onix - but his two battle-ready Pokémon were pretty tired.

Treecko hit Onix with Energy Ball before it was knocked out by Body slam. Then ZuZu fired Water gun after Water gun - plus a Pound to the face - and that was it. Onix was down.

Max had his first Gym battle victory!

...

Meanwhile, Gary was standing in front of the Viridian Gym. He stepped in to come face-to-face with three other trainers, each vying to be the Viridian Gym Leader.

Gary whizzed through the tests that evaluated ow well his Pokémon were trained and cared for. He battled six-on-site with each of the other trainers, while Nurse Joy, Will of the Elite Four, and a few other experience trainers observed. A bit later, they were about to announce the new Gym Leader, when a shot rattled through the air.

And in the next moment, an explosion shook the earth and sent Gary's mind into blackness.

...

"Wow, Max! Great job!" May high-fived her little brother excitedly. Her face was glowing. Drew, meanwhile, just smirked and patted the boy on his back.

"Great job, kid," Drew acknowledged.

Max grinned. "This is awesome! Now you can win your con - " He was cut off by a shot, rattling through the air, and an enormous explosion that hit the Rustboro Gym.

By none other than luck, Max and co. were already out of the Gym. That didn't mean they weren't in danger, though. May shrieked. Drew grabbed her roughly and yanked her along as he ran as fast as he could away from the building. "Get away!" He yelled. Max stumbled after them. Then he let out a blood-curdling cry as another shot rang out, and he fell to the ground. Blood welled on a spot on his shirt.

"_Max!" _May shrieked. She was slammed to the ground as Drew leaped on top of her, and another bullet whizzed over their heads.

"Can't let you get hurt, too, May," Drew muttered through gritted teeth. He stood, as did she. She rushed over to her brother, but it was too late.

"GOLEM, HYPER BEAM!"

An unknown, metallic voice rang out, and the attack exploded from an unknown source.

Max took the direct hit, and was lost in the huge beam of firery light.

Max screamed. May screamed. Drew screamed.

When the attack subsided, all that was left where Max had lain was a pair of charred, sizzling glasses and the glinting badge of the Rustboro Gym.

...

"Out! Get out!"

"Where's the exit?!"

"Is everyone here?"

"What in the Distortion World is going on?"

Shouts, panicked cries, and the frantic calling of names could be heard as the trainers trying out, their loved ones, and the judges struggled to escape the building. The exit was soon found, and they were all out safely.

Almost all of them.

"Where is Gary?!" Delia wailed. One of the trainers looked up. "You mean the brown haired guy with the Blastoise?" She nodded, looking at him desperately, but he shook his head. "I don't think he made it out."

Professor Oak's face blanched at the idea. "N-no," he whispered hoarsely. "Not Gary... not my grandson! _No!" _The Professor stumbled towards the burning wreckage, yelling out Gary's name, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. It was Will, of the Elite Four.

"Professor Oak, you can't go back in there. Your grandson..." Will shook his head. "If he's in there, he can't be alive."

"No, no, NO!" The Professor beat the ground with his fists. "I can't lose him! I can't! He's all I have! _No!" _

_... _

**Dun, dun, DUN! **

**That's it! There's the chapter you want so badly! And don't forget - I love reviews! Seriously, though, if you didn't know that by now, please keep better track of my author's notes. And REVIEW! **


	11. Chapter 11: The Plan Revealed (finally)

**This chapter is dedicated to: **

**Typhlosion8 **

**MeliaAntiqua **

**PocketMonstersDaisuki **

**BannanGodis **

**biginferno **

**Acekiller28 **

**The Detective of South-East **

**Five guests who call themselves Guest, Guest, Guest, Remisolleke, and Red. **

**Why? **_**BECAUSE THEY REVIEWED! :) **_

**And now, a **_**big I'm-sorry-but-not-really **_**for**** the lie I told in my last author's note. I said I would reveal Giovanni's plan... but I didn't! So I decided, since y'all are update-crazy, to post something real quick last night. Now, here's the rest of what I wanted to be that good ol' chapter 9 in a NEW chapter! **

**Disclaimer: Ego non ago habeo Pokémon. Ego non ago dicit in Anglice. **

**... **

The Black Hands of Team Rocket. That handprint...

Steven stood up from the table.

"Lance," he began. "I've seen that symbol before. A contest was sabotaged once, about five or six years ago. Another soon followed, and then another. After every attack, the G-Men and I discovered a strange black handprint, like that one. The attacks stopped soon after we found out - it was like they were only trying to get a message out. They wanted me to find out about them; sabotaging the contests was a way to get my attention."

Lance's frown deepened. "This will take a lot more investigation than I anticipated."

That was when the phone rang.

_Ring ring ring, ring ring ring, phone call! Phone call! Ring ring ring, ring ring - _

Lance picked up the receiver and spoke into it. "Yes?"

An image materialized on the screen. It was Daniel Rogers, one of Lance's head G-Men agents. Lance immediately became alert. Why would Agent Rogers be calling now?

"Lance, sir, there has been another attack. Two, actually. One at the recently reopened Viridian Gym, and another at the Rustboro Gym." Agent Rogers watched Lance, his face revealing nothing.

Lance, meanwhile, gripped the table with his hand, his knuckles white. "_What?! _Was anyone hurt?!"

Rogers looked away. "Y-yes. Two people, actually. Children. They... they were killed."

_Children. Killed. _Lance's blood ran cold. No. It wasn't. It _couldn't _be.

"Who?!" Lance hissed.

As Agent Rogers spoke the names, this time it was Steven who felt his blood chill. His face turned stark white. He _knew _those names. Both of them.

"Max Maple and Gary Oak."

...

_A 27-year-old, brown-haired Samuel Oak is racing through a grassy field. A six-year-old boy, with brown, spiky hair sticking out in all directions, is running with him. "Catch me, Dad!" The little boy laughs. _

_"I bet you I will!" Samuel replies. His voice is deep and strong, and his face shows affection beyond words. After his wife, Amelia, died in a burning building, their son Jon became Samuel's world, his pride and joy. _

_Samuel grabs Jon by the arms and swings him around before pulling him into a hug. Jon shrieks with laughter, and Samuel feels like he had never been happier. _

_About eighteen short years later, 24-year-old Jon and his lovely wife, Melissa, are sitting in Samuel's living room. He's a professor now, and the place is a bit messy with all of his papers and gadgets and things to do, but now he's a grandfather, too. _

_Jon gently passes the newborn baby boy into his father's arms. "His name is Gary." _

_Samuel stares into the baby's brown eyes and feels his heart welling up with pride, and his eyes with tears. _

_Two years after that, Jon is talking to Samuel. He's about to go out to dinner with Melissa. _

_"Can you watch Gary?" Jon pleads. Of course, Samuel agrees. He turns on the radio and settles back into a comfortable spot on the couch while watching little Gary play with Pokémon toys and building blocks. _

_He feels perfectly content, perfectly whole, but that doesn't last long. _

_A breaking news announcement abruptly interrupts the song that was playing. There has been a car crash on some big highway, and two people have been proclaimed dead. _

_The names are Jon and Melissa Oak. _

_Professor Oak is devastated by this. He is now Gary's legal guardian, though, and so he watches Gary and plays with him, holds him right and reads stories to him. Just like with Jon. Professor Oak watches his grandson growing up, and finds happiness in Gary. _

_Now, the scene changes again. Gary, looking bold and defiant, but ever calm. Then an explosion, and fire, and people screaming. A devastating realization, and Professor Oak's grief-induced fury. Then he falls to the ground, and everything goes black. _

Professor Oak woke up in a cold sweat. He was breathing hard and fast. Looking around, he realized where he was. He was in his bed at his house.

Delia walked in nd gave Professor Oak a weak smile. "You passed out. I brought you here. Do you... want some tea?"

Professor Oak nodded, grateful for what she had done, and took a sip of the tea, but he didn't have the energy to smile back. He just couldn't. Gary was gone.

Gary was _gone. _

Professor Oak drew in a sharp breath. His hands shook and his tea spilled. Delia gently took the cup from his hands.

Angry tears welled up in the Professor's eyes. He gritted his teeth and fought them back, but they came anyway.

"Gary," Samuel muttered, his voice hoarse with grief. "Oh, Arceus, why?"

...

May clutched the badge tightly in her fist. "No. No. No." She whispered. She couldn't stop saying that. _No. _It was impossible. She wouldn't believe it. Max couldn't be gone.

But he was.

Her knuckles were white, as was her face. Her entire body shook. _No, no, no_! This wasn't right. It couldn't happen!

May let out a cry of distress, and felt Drew's arm tighten around her. He was holding her close, and had been that whole day, while they sat restlessly on the bed in the Pokémon Center.

May reached out with both hands and wrapped her arms around him. He returned the embrace, and May felt tears dripping from her cheeks into his shoulder, but he didn't care. He just kept holding her.

"It'll be okay, May," he whispered. It didn't matter if it was true or not. "I promise. And I'm here for you, no matter what."

...

Giovanni's smile was cold. So was his voice, and his demeanor. His very attitude toward life was cold. He, himself, was cold - next to "cold" in the dictionary, you would find a picture of Giovanni himself.

Okay, not really. I made that up. You might just find a picture of some ice or something. But still, Giovanni _was _pretty cold!

He spoke into the microphone with that cold voice of his. The microphone connected to an intercom, so the two captives cod hear him.

"You will listen to me." He began. "You have been kidnapped, obviously. Your friends and family and the rest of the world believe you to be dead, so they will not be coming to rescue you." Giovanni smiled cruelly. He was so clever.

Giovanni continued. "I have a plan to take over every region in the Napaj nation. Team Rocket will control every person and Pokémon, Legendaries included. And i will control Team Rocket. Do you see where this is going?"

"What does that have to do with us?!" Giovanni heard the black-haired boy yell. Giovanni's smile widened. In other words, it just got creepier.

"Of course, you would not understand." Giovanni replied, his voice cold and creepy as ever. "I plan to capture each and every one of your friends. You, Ash, have something most remarkable in you. You have a way with saving the world in one way or another, time and time again. Not only this, but you have an ability: the ability of aura. And your bond with your Pokémon is the most remarkable thing about you."

Giovanni let the information sink in before continuing. "This ability is something you have also passed on to your friends. You have helped and influenced them in many ways. In this way, all of you are dangerous, but could certainly help me in a very big way."

"What do you mean?" The girl's voice was shaky. _Perfect,_ Giovanni thought. He was frightening her. Probably the boy, too.

"If I can control you, I can gain amazing abilities. I can extract your power and use all your aura and life energy to fuel my plan. Your power is exactly what I need. Of course, the process of my controlling your power would likely kill you, and all your friends as well when I do it on them. But if you survive, I will kill you anyway. You are all a danger to me, but also a weapon I can use."

On the screen showing the captives' cell, Giovanni's creepy smile turn dark. He saw their fear, and their fury. He also saw their helplessness. Giovanni switched off the lights in their cell, and they were thrust into darkness.

Giovanni's plan was going to succeed. He was sure of it.

...

**Oohhh! Cool, right? But bad. Very bad. But... cool! I'm pretty excited to keep writing this. I hope you're as excited as I am to read it! Ooh, and did you like that little ContestShipping scene? Knew ya would! And, must I say it? REVIEW! **

**Hint: I do not own Pokémon. I will not say this in English. **

**(By the way, guys, wow! 25 reviews! That's a lot, I know maybe it isn't really, but it feels like it! It makes me happy! Thank you!) **


	12. Chapter 12: What Emily Doesn't Know

**You have been eagerly awaiting this chapter, all of y'all! I think. Sooooooo, here it IS! :) **

**Ash: Do you own Pokémon yet? **

**Me: Nope. Hold on, I'm busy emailing Nintendo for the... how many times have I done it? **

**Max: Let's see. This is your 247th time, Kit. Obsessive much? **

**Me: ...for the 247th time, Ash. And yes, Max, I'm obsessive. Why D'you think I've stuck with this fanfic for so long, huh? **

**Ash: Because I'm awesome and you like writing about me? **

**Me: Think again. Okay, now all my lovely readers...! **

**So PocketMonstersDaisiku reviewed (cause we know all **_**awesome **_**people review. ahem.) and was wondering how Emily is going to have a part in the story. I promised in a PM that this chapter would reveal that. I also promised this chapter is where it gets **_**real. **_**So, here goes nothin', folks... **

_**LET'S GET REAL!**___

_(Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim Pokémon. Did I say that already? Well, don't sue me. Great, now I'll bet you a Kit Kat bar someone's gonna sue me just 'cause I said that.) _

...

Professor Oak's hair was a mess. His eyes were dull. He was in his lab coat, and he was about to go feed all the Pokémon he kept at his lab.

Delia walked into the kitchen, where the Professor was making the food. She reached out and set a couple Oren berries on the counter.

"Here." She said quietly. "I think... I think Ash's..." Delia's voice cracked, but she continued. "I think his Unova Pokémon would like these berries in their food, since they are native to their home region..."

Professor Oak smiled weakly. "Thank you, Delia."

When he had finished making the food, the Professor set off down the hall, towards the door to the lab's enormous "backyard" of sorts. As he walked down the hall, his eyes drifted to a door, left slightly ajar.

He tried to force himself to look away, but he couldn't. Instead, he set the Pokémon food down and stumbled into the room, pushing open the door.

There were little Pokémon dolls and decorations everywhere. The room was a bit of a mess, and it held too many memories - painful memories.

It was Gary's room.

The Professor couldn't control himself anymore.

He yelled out in agony - emotional agony. His pain could not be self-described in words. He had lost everything he cared about. His parents, his wife, his son, his daughter-in-law, and now his only grandson.

Professor Oak gritted his teeth, fighting back the tears that came. They flowed down his cheek, splashing on his lab coat, gasping and sobbing. He felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and Delia's sweet, subtle perfume washed over him. His hands shook as he reached out to her, to steady himself - not only physically, but emotionally, and mentally as well.

Delia gave him a small smile. He took a shaky breath and attempted to smile back. Then he stood, slowly, and she led him out of Gary's childhood bedroom. The door _clicked _shut behind her.

Delia knew exactly how he felt. She knew all of his pain, and all of his regrets. She knew his loneliness and she knew his self blame. She had felt it all before.

She still felt it now.

That was when the phone rang, and it changed everything.

...

Misty's sisters were watching TV. She walked by the living room, where the television was turned on. She was on her way to the pool, where she planned to let out her Pokémon to enjoy some free time.

That was when she saw the news report, and she stopped short.

_Lance, Champion of the Kanto and Johto regions, recently held a meeting with the other four Champions. They investigated the recent deaths of two young trainers, Dawn Berlitz and Ash Ketchum, and discovered what may be the beginning of a conspiracy, started by the Black Hands of Team Rocket. _

The next thing the anchor said made Misty feel sick. Her face went white.

_We also are receiving news of two similar attacks, also by the Black Hands, resulting in the simultaneous deaths of two children, Max Maple at ten years old and Gary Oak at fourteen. This clearly was no accident. What do these attacks mean? _

Misty stared at the TV. _Deaths. Children. Max. Gary. _

Gary, both Ash's rival and good friend... and Max, another close friend of Max's, and May's little brother. Misty was breathing fast. No way they were dead... no, no, no. All around her, people were dying.

People she knew.

Or, more so... people _Ash _knew...

Misty's blood ran cold. First Ash himself, then Dawn, and now Max and Gary. They were all pretty good friends. But if what Pikachu had told her was true...

...and Ash was alive...

...and all these attacks were connected...

...was it possible that Dawn, Max and Gary were alive, too?

Misty realized she was the only one who knew Ash was still out there, alive somewhere. And with Gary gone, Professor Oak's last living relative, the one person he cared about most in the world... Misty couldn't even imagine the pain he was going through. And May had to be an emotional wreck. Ash and Dawn, both good friends of May's, were gone, and that had to have hit her hard. And now, if May thought she had lost her brother as well, she was probably going through unimaginable grief.

Misty raced over to the phone, all thoughts of playing with her Pokémon forgotten. She scrambled for the number, and then held the receiver up to her ear, holding her breath, completely still.

It rang and rang, and... Ash's mother picked up! Misty breathed a sigh of relief. Professor Oak was there, too, though he looked a mess. Misty couldn't blame him. Both Delia Ketchum and Samuel Oak had shared the same pain: the pain of losing anything and everything you care about, the pain of losing all you have.

"Misty?" Delia said. "What is it?"

Misty took a deep breath. "I think... I think Ash is alive."

Delia's breath caught, and Professor Oak's eyes widened.

"_What _did you say?"

"I said Ash is alive, and if I'm right, I'll bet you Gary is too." Misty laid it all out on the table for them. "The other day, a new trainer, Emily, came to the Gym. She said her starter was a Pikachu. That was _Ash's _Pikachu - I dunno what you were thinking, Professor Oak, giving Pikachu to a newbie, but whatever - and Pikachu... managed to tell me that Ash was alive."

"H-how?" Delta's face showed anxiety, but her eyes were filled with hope. Her child, her whole world, her pride and joy, had been killed. Now she might have a chance at getting him back, and she didn't want to lose that hope.

"Pikachu just... gave me this _look,_ I guess. And it said Ash's name - at least, how Pikachu usually seems to refer to Ash in Pokémon language - and suddenly I just _knew._"Misty looked at Professor Oak, who wore a similar expression to Delia's. "And Gary... well, Lance and the other Champions, they've found out that it's all connected. The attacks on Max, Gary, Ash and Dawn, they were all by the Black Hands of Team Rocket. So if Ash is alive, well, I'm putting my money on Gary being alive too."

Professor Oak's face was white. "G-gary. Alive?" Misty could see how he struggled even to make full sentences, he was so breathless with excitement.

Misty nodded. "Look, Professor, Mrs. Ketchum - can we keep this between us, please? If this gets out to the public..." Misty shook her head. "...It'd be hectic."

Delia nodded quickly. A smile was slowly spreading across her face as it all sank in. Misty smiled back, and hung up.

...

In the Pokémon lab in Pallet Town, Delia fell into Professor Oak's arms and cried. He held her and cried, too. But these, however, were tears of joy, and not grief.

Her son was alive.

His grandson was alive.

It was heartbreakingly joyful.

"Oh, Ash," Delia whispered, "We'll find you. I'll find you. I promise."

...

A few hours later, and our new hero Emily was feeling grumpy.

She was at the bottom of a pit trap quite a ways outside of Cerulean City. Pikachu was sitting beside her, just as annoyed, but he actually knew who was behind this...

"Prepare for trouble!"

"And make it double!"

_Yep, it's them,_ Pikachu thought, exasperated.

**"**Toprotect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all peoples within our nation."

_As idiotic as ever. _

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above."

_With their stupid motto to boot. _

"Okay, cut it, will you?!" Emily yelled. "I just want to know who you are!"

_Wait for it... _

"JUST LET US FINISH, IGNORANT TWERP!"

"Okay. Let's continue."

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"

"Meeeeeeowth, that's right!"

Emily scowled. "Team Rocket, huh? I've heard of you. Well, you're not stealing my Pokémon, and that's that!"

Then Emily got a good look at them, and she laughed. "Well, this'll be no trouble at all. You're a bunch of idiots, obviously. I could've been out of here while you were saying that dumb motto of yours!"

Jessie gritted her teeth and held up her fist. "YOU... YOU... YOU LITTLE TWERP!"

Emily laughed again. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu looked up at Emily, for the first time with a touch of fondness. He was starting to like this kid...

"Pikaaa, _chuuuu!"_

There was a huge explosion, and three little shapes went flying into the air. _This is __**WAY **__too early, _Meowth was thinking irritable. _Well, oh well... _

"Team Rocket's blasting off again!" The three figures faded into a sparkle, then disappeared.

Emily smirked. "It's kind of hilarious. They're imbeciles."

Pikachu nodded. "Pika, pika pikachu."

Then, suddenly, Emily felt a sort of chill up her spine, the kind you get when either you're being watched or you're really cold. It felt like both for Emily. Her face turned stark white, and her hands went clammy. Goose bumps rose up her skin. There was a powerful prescience here.

_Your aura._ A voice echoed in Emily's mind. _You have such a unique aura..._

Emily's mind seemed to jump-start, and flashes of images appeared in her mind. A black-haired boy with a hat on, and a Pikachu on his shoulder. A flaming birdlike Pokémon, circling the sky. Another bird Pokémon, this one icy, and a similar sparking bird Pokémon.

_Fire, ice, and electric._ There was the voice again. _They will come together. The Aura Prophecy is unfolding at last. _

And, as the flashes and the words subsided, Emily realized something. That Pikachu she'd seen was her Pikachu. It certainly looked younger, but there was no mistaking it. Emily had a lot of questions on her mind, but the main one was: _Who is that black-haired boy, and what's his connection to my Pikachu? _

...

Trip stared at the TV screen, absolutely enraptured.

Four attacks. Four children his age killed. Trip didn't know much about Ash, but he got the feeling that all of those kids were connected in some way - specifically, connected to Ash. That would imply that whoever was targeting them wanted anyone who was connected to Ash dead...

And Emily had Ash's Pikachu.

_She could be killed._ The words rang in Trio's mind, and his blood ran cold. Immediately, he grabbed a backpack from his closet and began shoving clothes and things into it.

Going to Kanto might not be the best idea, and Trip knew that he might be thrusting himself into the danger. He didn't even stop to think about how he, himself was also connected to Ash as a rival. All he could think about was that Emily could be in danger.

And if something happened to his little cousin, Trip didn't know how he would cope.

...

**Whooo! That was fun to write. **

**So, I didn't really answer the question about what part Emily is gonna play in the story, but I gave ya a big, fat, obvious hint (or a whole bunch of those) and I think that is plenty good enough! Right?! Right. RIGHT. **

**Okay. **

**You guys happy about where I'm taking the story? I hope you are. Thanks for all the reviews! 30 so far! :D **

**COMING SOON: AN UPDATE. I PROMISE. FOR REAL THIS TIME. **

***cough* **

**MAYBE. **


	13. Chapter 13: The Attacks Continue!

**Mmmm! I have been enjoying some delicious s'mores my good friend Ty8 made. Thank you, Ty8! No more flames, I promise! Maybe next time, you can just use a microwave! **

**Anyhow, I know you guys'll love this chapter. You might hate me for it, just 'cause of something evil I did to a certain character RIGHT AFTER I made something awesome happen. Yeah, I'm evil like that. Well, enjoy! REVIEWS are welcome! **

**... **

"And so the Aipom said, 'If only I had eaten that berry first, I wouldn't have had to eat all the others!'" Iris finished happily.

Cilan laughed and ran his fingers through Iris's hair. She had the funniest stories and jokes, and Cilan knew he would never be bored around her. She tilted her head up to look at him and smiled warmly.

When Ash had first come to Unova, he had been 13. Iris was 14, which Ash was extremely surprised to learn. "But you're shorter than me!" He had protested, and she had called him a kid for assuming she was younger just because of her height.

Cilan, meanwhile, was 15 then. He had always been very tall for his age, as had his brothers. Now, sitting on the steps in front of the Striaton Gym, Cilan could see the clear height difference between Iris and himself. She was 15 now, and he was 16. They still differed in height, but had grown much closer to and fonder of each other.

Cilan was always amused by the way Iris managed to wield her words like a sword and fight with them. She could be funny, she could be mean, she could be annoying, she could be sweet, and she could be very smart. Cilan had watched her tick off her rival, Georgia, all the time, and bait Trip, Ash's rival, as well. But Cilan himself never found Iris annoying or mean.

Cilan had been spending more and more time with Iris lately. He tried his best to be not only an emotional support for her, but a comfort, and a friend. In return, she bought a smile to his face whenever she could.

Now, Cilan looked down into Iris's deep auburn eyes. They were like Ash's, but a bit more red. Cilan had always found her eyes fascinating. They were beautiful, too. Beautiful.

Her hair was soft. He had always loved the color of it. The purple-black matched so beautifully with her deep tan skin tone.

"You're so beautiful, Iris," Cilan murmured.

Iris looked up, a bit surprised. Her surprise melted into a smile. She leaned in, just a little bit closer. Cilan knew what she wanted. He leaned in, too, and their lips met.

It lasted mere moments, but the moments were long and sweet. It was not Cilan's first kiss, but it was by far the best. He found himself truly getting lost in Iris's gentle touch and sweet scent. His eyes were closed, so he couldn't see the look on her face, but he knew she loved it, too.

As he slowly pulled back, Cilan saw that Iris's expression was somewhat dazed. There was a smile on her face, and he found there was a smile on his, too. The two stood up, holding hands, and he looked into her eyes once more. Iris was so beautiful.

That was when Cilan saw it.

It was a rustle in the bushes, and the sharp glint of metal. Cilan realized what it was just moments too late.

"Iris!" He leaped at Iris just as the four consecutive shots rang out, rattling the air, splintering the silence, and shattering the perfect moment they had, moments ago, had all to themselves.

"Cilan!" Iris screamed. She felt Cilan shoving her to the ground, pushing her out of the way. She heard the shots, and thought for a moment they had both avoided the line of fire. Then she saw Cilan falling to the ground, writhing in pain, gasping and clutching his side. Blood soaked his shirt. He had been moments too late - not to save her, but to avoid getting shot himself.

Iris felt tears fill her eyes. "Cilan!" She cried out once more, dropping to her knees beside him. _"Cilan!" _Tears dripped onto his hair and clothes. She reached out and took his hand.

Cilan looked up at Iris, pain evident on his face.

"I-I..." Cilan coughed, and Iris realized he was choking on blood. Her blood chilled. "I-Iris... I... I l-love y-you..." Cilan choked and coughed again. His body shuddered, and his eyes closed. Then he was still.

_"Cilan!"_ Iris sobbed. "_No!" _

Iris heard doors slamming and fast, frantic footsteps.

"Iris! Cilan!" It was Chili's voice. He stumbled down to her. Seeing Cilan, the red-haired boy froze. "Wh-what..."

Cress was next. "N-no," He whispered, stumbling over to Chili and Iris. "No. No, no, no." He stared at his brother's cold, unmoving body.

Chili grabbed Cilan's other hand. "Cilan! Cilan, please! Cilan, _wake up!" _

Iris clutched the connoisseur's hand. "Cress!" She hissed. "Call... Call the hospital! Call someone! _Please!" _Her voice cracked, and more tears rolled down her cheeks. "Please."

Cress's hand shook as he pulled out his phone and dialed a number. It picked up almost immediately. "Help me, please!" Cress cried, his voice hoarse. "I - I need an ambulance. My... my brother is dying!"

...

Gary woke up in a very dark place.

The last thing he could remember was being at the Gym Leader tryouts. Then there was an explosion, Gary blacked out... And now, he was here.

Gary tried to get his bearings. He struggled to sit up from where he lay on the ground. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, Gary glimpsed the form of a small boy sprawled on the ground near him.

Gary gently propped up the boy, recognizing it as Max. That was one of the kids who traveled with Ash in Hoenn, Gary was sure. "Max!" Gary hissed. "Max!"

The boy groaned and shifted. He opened his eyes and found himself staring into the face of Gary Oak - Ash's rival, he realized. Max tried to sit up, but gasped in pain and fell back. He clutched his side.

Gary was instantly on his feet. He reached down for his pouch, where he kept emergency medical supplies, only to find that it wasn't there.

"Max! What happened?" Gary demanded.

Max looked up at Gary blearily. "I - I got shot. I th-think."

Gary dropped to his knees by Max's side and carefully pulled up the little boy's shirt, just enough to see the wound. He breathed a sigh of relief to find that the bullet had been removed. He didn't ask questions as to how; they would cross that bridge when they came to it. The wound was still sensitive, though, but without his supplies there wasn't much for Gary to do.

"Max, your wound is healing. You'll be fine, but it's just really sensitive right now. This is a serious injury - you've been healed to the point where you won't die, but if you aren't careful it could reopen and you could be in grave danger, so just keep still for now. Once it heals further, you'll be able to move more easily."

Max nodded. He was still holding his side, but he do ent seem to be in much pain. Gary looked around at their surroundings. It was a dank, dark room with almost no light. The only light did come from a dim source of light outside their room, and was filtered in through a set of bars. It was a barred door, and Gary could see what looked like fifteen or twenty padlocks. _Hardly a room,_ Gary thought. _This place is more like a... a jail cell. _

So Max had been shot, but obviously didn't really remember anything thing after that. Gary just remembered an explosion. There was an image lingering in his mind, though. He wasn't sure where it had come from, but it was a handprint - a black handprint.

An explosion. Fire. They didn't know where they were now. A black handprint. Gary's blood ran cold as it sank in.

About five or six years ago, Gary remembered there being several attacks on contests being held in the Hoenn region. A black handprint was all that could be found as evidence. Most of the attacks had involved fire. Then Ash and Dawn both ended up dying in a fire, both of which were identified as arson. So someone had set both the hospital and Ash's house on fire. And then an explosion, more fire, and a black handprint in Gary's mind. Ash, Gary, Max, and Dawn. What did they have in common? They were all connected to Ash in some way. As the pieces fell into place, Gary's blood ran cold.

He remembered a story Ash had told once, about aura. Ash claimed the whole thing was true, but Gary didn't believe a word of it. How could Ash have met a talking Lucario, and a Mew, and saved the world all within a day? Gary was sure it was just nonsense. Now he was having second thoughts. After Gary and Ash went their separate ways to chase separate dreams, Gary began to notice something... _different. _It was as if he was seeing the world from a different perspective. He felt closer to his Pokémon, too. Gary now got the feeling that had a lot to do with Ash.

Gary pulled off his jacket and lay it on the ground. Immediately, goose bumps rose up on his skin. It was freezing in the cell. That made Gary wonder where they were. It had a certain earthy scent to it... perhaps it was cold because they were deep underground? Gary shivered. He did not like it one bit underground.

Gary looked down at Max. The Hoenn region was generally a warm region, so the young trainer wouldn't be used to cold temperatures, and Max was dressed very lightly. He wore only a green polo shirt and khaki shorts, and he was shivering. His lips were turning blue.

Quickly, Gary wrapped his jacket around Max. He gently gathered the boy into his arms and held him close to warm him.

Then Gary felt something hit him. Hard. He let out a cry as he was thrown forward and to the ground. Gary held Max protectively. He wasn't about to let the young boy get hurt more than he already was.

For the first time, Gary thought of his grandfather. The Professor couldn't be in good shape. Gary shuddered to think that his grandfather thought he was dead. The grief would be too much for him.

Then Gary thought of May, Max's older sister. She thought two of her best friends were dead, and now her brother, too? Gary gritted his teeth. If his assumption about why they were here was correct, he was sure Ash and Dawn were alive, too. And he planned on getting back home.

"Who was that?!" Gary yelled as he struggled to his knees. Then he saw something flying at him. It was a ball of dark purple raw energy, and it crackles and sparked. Gary shielded Max with his body, and the attack threw him backwards. He hit the wall of their prison and felt the wind knocked out of him. Gary gasped with pain.

"Now!" Gary heard a voice booming through the air. "Will you listen?" He realized there must be an intercom above him. Looking up, Gary also saw a camera. There was a screen, too, and on the screen was an image: the image of Ash Ketchum and Dawn Berlitz.

"No!" Ash yelled. "What are you doing to them, Giovanni?" He spat the name like it was poison.

"Ash!" Gary yelled. "Dawn!"

Ash looked straight at the screen. "Gary! Is - is that Max? What are - ?"

"Ash, we're being attacked. All of your friends, and you. Anyone with any connection to you - someone wants us either dead, or captured!"

"Gary, I know. It's - it's Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket. His Black Hands are the ones behind this."

Gary's blood ran cold. That black handprint he had seen in his mind... that was their symbol. So he had been right.

"Listen, Gary, Giovanni thinks... He thinks I have some power or something, and he thinks we _all _do! All of my friends! And so... so he said he's going to 'extract that power' or something, and I... He says he's going to kill us. For _real _this time."

Gary's eyes narrowed.

"All right enough chitchat!" The voice boomed again. "Ash, you will follow my plan. Or these friends of yours - well, I wouldn't exactly like to kill them, they may be of use to me, but i will for these purposes."

Gary felt anger boiling inside him. Giovanni wanted to use Ash's power to take over the Napaj nation, apparently. He would hurt, even kill, innocent people if he succeeded. Gary wasn't going to let that happen.

"A-ash," Gary said. "I would say to not do it, I'm not worth it, but..." Gary looked down at the young boy in his arms. "But Max. He... He has to go home. For May..."

Ash nodded gravely. He understood. "Gary, I... I'm going to do it. I can't let anyone else get hurt because of me." But his look conveyed something Gary understood quite clearly, but Giovanni would never be able to. _We will get out of here,_ Ash's look said. Gary gave an almost imperceptible nod. He got the message.

...

"Okay, Pikachu, Thunderbolt, now! Use it on me!"

"Pika, CHUUU!"

"Whoa! That was a close one. You're improving, Pikachu. Try to be a little faster this time, though."

"Pika. Pika, CHUUUUU!"

"Wwwaaaaaaauuuuggghh!" Emily yelled as the Thunderbolt hit. "Oh... w-wow... that was really... fast and... powerful..."

Pikachu grinned at Emily. She leaned down and rubbed Pikachu's head playfully. "Chaaaa!" Pikachu squealed happily.

"Guess this is a nice training spot, huh? We might stick around here a bit longer."

Then she heard the shot.

There was a _bang,_and a bullet whizzed by Emily's ear, just inches from her head. Emily whipped around. "Pikachu, Electro ball now!"

Pikachu threw a crushing ball of energy, crackling with electricity, at the direction from which the shot was fired. Emily hopped from foot to foot and zigzagged in different directions, not making herself an easy target. Four more shots fired, and all of them missed. Emily's eyes narrowed. Then the Electro ball made contact, and there was a cry, and then silence.

"C-c'mon, Pikachu." Emily said, clearly shaken. "L-let's get to... to the n-next city. I don't think I wanna... wanna stick around here for training any... any longer."

...

Iris clutched Cilan's hand tightly. He was pale and not moving. For a terrible moment, she had thought he was dead, but the ambulance soon arrived. The paramedics on the scene confirmed that he was alive, but just barely. They managed to stabilize him somewhat, and now Iris, Cilan, and his brothers were all on their way to the hospital. The nearest one was in an awfully faraway city, at least an hour's drive. The ambulance driver promised that they would make it in time, but his face said otherwise.

Iris clutched Cilan's hand tighter. Chili's face was red and puffy with tears, and his knuckles were white as he clenched his fists. Cress had his head in his hands, and he was crying, too. He looked up at his brother's pale, unconscious face, at his blood-soaked shirt, and looked away again, his shoulders shuddering.

Iris could not control her tears. They splashed her shirt and Cilan's as she leaned over him.

"P-please, Cilan," she whispered hoarsely. "Just...just hang on a little longer. _Please._"

...

**You like this chapter? I know, I know, I'm mean and I got Cilan shot... but it's for story purposes! His poor brothers, though, and poor Iris. I wonder how they'll take it if Cilan dies? For real? Ooohhhh, ideas, ideas, ideas! :D **

**Anyway, please review! And go read In My Darkest Hour by Ty8 'cause it's awesome! I love s'mores! **


	14. Chapter 14: A Pewter City Visitor

**Hi! It's me! EVERYONE AS SOON AS YOU FINISH THIS GO READ ALL OF THE STORIES BY MY FAVORITE FANFIC AUTHOR! Her name is Typhlosion8 :) Thank you! And REVIEW! **

**Ash: What about the disclaimer, huh? **

**Pikachu: Pika, pikachu! **

**Me: Whatever. You say it, Pikachu. **

**Pikachu: Pika! Pikachu, chu pikapika pikachu pi pika. Chu! **

**Me: Good luck figuring that out! **

**... **

Iris's breathing got faster as she looked out the window of the ambulance. They were approaching the hospital. During the drive there, Iris had not let Cilan's hand go once. Now, as they came to a stop in front of the entrance, Iris's grip on him tightened.

The back of the ambulance opened before the vehicle had even stopped. Doctors and paramedics rushed in, and Iris lost sight and touch of Cilan in the frenzy of people. She found herself being ushered into the hospital and to a waiting room.

Cress and Chili sat side by side on one of the cushioned sofas, holding each other's hands tightly. There was a window that looked into the operating room. Iris stumbled over to it, and watched as Cilan was wheeled in on the gurney and placed gently on the hospital bed. She caught a glimpse of Cilan's wounds as they pulled off his shirt, which was sticky with blood. Then the curtain was pulled around the bed, and Iris's view of Cilan was cut off.

But what of the wounds she had seen made her feel sick.

Iris felt tears come into her eyes as she staggered back over to the sofa. She gripped the armrest for balance and collapsed into a sitting position. That was _Cilan _in there. And he was dying.

_Dying. _

Iris began to sob again. No, no, no! This couldn't happen; she couldn't lose him. No, no, no...

Iris felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Chili. He was crying just as hard as she was. Iris reached up and held tightly to his hand, trying to steady her own emotions. Tears were flowing freely down Cress's face as he watched and held his brother's other hand.

They had to believe Cilan would make it, even if they knew he probably wouldn't.

...

Max wished his sister were here.

If May was with him, she would hold him. She would hug him and kiss his hair and whisper that it would all be okay. She would know what to do.

May always knew what to do. She was always there for him. But now he didn't have her anymore, and he had never felt more alone. He was lying in the corner of their "room" and curled up in Gary's jacket. He was freezing cold, and his side was still aching. A single tear dripped down his cheek. He missed May. He missed her so much.

Gary was sitting beside him, watching for any sign that Max's injury was getting worse, or anything like that. He was tired - exhausted, even - but he wouldn't sleep. Not with their being in Giovanni's clutches. Anything could happen to him - anything could happen to _Max _- while he was sleeping, so Gary simply resolved to not sleep.

Gary placed a hand on Max's shoulder, and the simple gesture comforted Max. He gave Gary a weak smile, to reassure him, and drifted off to sleep. His dreams were full of memories, most of them about May.

_Ash is standing in the Gym. Max is talking to him. _

_"You were in the Johto Conference, right? Your name is... Alf?" _

_"What? No! It's Ash!" _

_Next, Max and May are enjoying a meal in a cable car. Then there's a big crash, and the car starts to shake violently. Max screams and hugs his sister. She holds him, and yells above the commotion, "Don't worry, Max! It'll be okay, I promise!" _

_Then he's being confronted by Team Rocket and can't do a thing about it. May steps in, saying, "He's the only brother I've got and I love him!" Max hugs her, and she holds him close. "Please, Max, don't ever scare me like that again." _

_The scene keeps flashing, and Max sees images of May and himself. He sees May smiling, May laughing, May angry, May holding him, May just being... May. _

...

May stared at the picture and felt tears welling up in her eyes. Drew's hand was on her arm as she felt her body begin to tremble. Her hands shook so much, she lost her grip on the photograph. It drifted to the ground.

May clutched Drew's hand tightly. She looked into his eyes as tears rolled down her cheeks. "I - I can't... i can't t-take it any m-more, Dr-drew," she sobbed. He reached out and brushed her hair out of her face. His own eyes were tearing up. He couldn't bear to see her like this.

"Yes," he murmured. "You can take it, May. I promise, you can take this. You want to know what Max told me before his Gym battle?" It was risky, but Drew needed to take a risk. He had to keep May holding on.

May looked up at Drew, and fresh tears welled up in her eyes. "N-no," she whispered hoarsely.

"He told me that after he won his Gym battle, he wanted to watch you win that contest. He said he knew you could, because he saw how you had done amazing things before. And he said you were the one who inspired him to never give up at anything he ever did, so he was going to win the Gym battle for sure."

May wiped tears from her eyes. "He... He said that?"

Drew nodded. "May, you have to keep going. Do it... do it for Max, okay?"

May bit her lip, and Drew could see the tears in her eyes. "Okay," she murmured. "Yes, Drew. I'll do it." And she pulled him into a hug.

He wrapped his arms around her and ran his fingers through her pretty brown hair. When he pulled away, Drew saw something on May's face he thought he might never see again.

He saw a smile. It was a sad smile, but it was there.

...

The first thing Emily saw when she stepped into Pewter City for the first time was Trip.

He ran to her and crushed her in a hug. Emily let out a muffled cry of protest but, realizing who it was, returned the embrace. When he pulled away, Trip smiled at her. "I'm so glad you're okay, Emily!"

Emily blinked, confused. "...okay? What do you mean?"

Trip gave Emily a grave look. "Emily, do you remember seeing all that stuff on the media about those kids who were killed?"

Emily frowned. "You mean the ones who got attacked by the Black Hands or something? Yeah, what's that got to do with me?"

Trip took a deep breath. This was_ not _going to be easy. "Emily, all those kids had a connection to a certain boy - Ash. Ash Ketchum. One of them _was _Ash Ketchum, in fact. That basically means that anyone with any kind of connection to Ash is in danger. Grave danger."

"Yeah, but - " Suddenly, Emily froze. She remembered now. The boy on the news, the one who died... He'd had a Pikachu. And he looked exactly like the boy from her flashback... that would explain why Pikachu was so high-level, and why it acted so oddly. "Oh... oh, Arceus. This is his Pikachu, isn't it? I have Ash's Pikachu, and so... so you thought I was in danger."

Trip nodded grimly. "Yeah. That's right." He replied. "I came here to check up on you, and maybe even travel with you. I can't... I can't let anything happen to you. You've always been like a sister to me, even if you're my cousin. I love you, Emily. That's why I had to come make sure you were okay."

Emily bit her lip and looked away. Something had just clicked in her mind. "You were almost too late."

"_What?!" _Trip exclaimed.

"Yeah," she muttered. "Someone tried to shoot me the other day."

Trip's eyes were blazing. "What happened, Emily?!"

"Well, the first time he missed. I avoided the next four, and Pikachu's Electro ball took him out. Then I ran like a Rapidash and got out of there."

Trip raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. I know how powerful that Pikachu's Electro ball can be."

Emily's frown deepened. "Wait, what? You mean you know my Pikachu?"

Trip nodded. "Yeah. Ash and I were rivals, so I know his - I mean, your Pikachu very well." Trip still had trouble thinking of Ash's Pikachu as Emily's Pikachu. It just didn't make any sense in his mind.

Emily picked up Pikachu and held him in her arms. Pikachu wasn't too comfortable being held by Emily, though. "Pika!" It protested. "Pikachu! Pika pika!"

Emily blinked. "Oh - oh. Okay, Pikachu, here." She set the little Mouse Pokémon down. Then she looked up at Trip. "Trip, how do we even know that Ash and his friends are dead?"

Trip blinked. "What do you mean?"

Emily sighed. "Trippy, maybe you're older than me, but you sure can be dense."

Trip turned red. "What?! Don't call me that, Emily, and I am not dense!"

Emily shoved Trip playfully and laughed. Then her expression turned serious. "Trip, they never found Ash or any of his friends. They were 'assumed dead'. So, if we know they're being targeted, how do we know it's not for an entirely different purpose than to kill them?"

Trip blinked, clearly confused. "What do you mean?"

Emily looked him right in the eye. "What if Ash isn't dead, Trip? What if he's just being held captive somewhere or something? Has anyone thought about that?"

...

Serena watched the anchor's cheery face as she talked about the strange events of the past week or so - namely, the deaths of two children named Max Maple and Gary Oak, and the recent attempted murder of a sixteen-year-old boy named Cilan. Serena felt sick to her stomach, mainly because they were also talking all about how these attacks seemed to be connected to the deaths of Dawn and Ash over a month ago. Serena was also a little bit scared.

Ash had loved to talk about all of his adventures from before he came to Kalos. He was constantly mentioning his friends, too, and Serena recognized every name that was on the news now. They were all connected to Ash in some way. This was not any random series of attacks.

Could Serena's life be in danger, too?

Serena didn't want to die. She might not have cared a week ago, or any time in the past month, really, but totally letting go and losing control the day before had allowed Serena to realize something: she couldn't dwell on this forever. The world would keep turning. Serena had gone through grief. She had gone through heartbreak. She had gone through emotional agony like she had never known before.

And now, Serena knew, she was ready to truly begin moving on.

...

Brock stared at the TV screen. First Dawn and Ash. Now Max and Gary. And the young man he knew Ash had traveled with in Unova - Cilan. Brock thought about it, and tears came into his eyes. Pain seared his heart, and he fought back the salty tears that threatened to spill. He thought about it more, and his blood chilled as he thought about what each of the children who'd been attacked had in common.

They all knew Ash; they all had some connection to him.

Brock gritted his teeth in fury. Someone was _killing _his friends for some unknown reason. Someone was attacking _innocent __children _for their own selfish purposes. What's more, Brock saw on the TV, it was Team Rocket. Brock's fists clenched. He had never thought he would ever truly _hate _anyone before. But now, with his friends murdered at the hands of an evil organization, Brock saw no reason not to hate Team Rocket.

He hated them. Every single person out there who had anything to do with killing Ash, Dawn, Max, and Gary, was a person Brock _hated. _Every ounceofhim_ hated _Team Rocket.

...

**Ooh, Brock's getting emotional! Well, that wasn't the best chapter of this story, certainly, but it was pretty fun to write. I plan on starting a new fanfic soon, and I know exactly what it will be about, so follow me or just watch out for that! **

**Ash says he still hasn't gotten to kiss Serena in the story. Well, big whoop, Ash and all you AmourShipper out there, Ash happens to be kidnapped right now so that's tricky business! Unless you want me to get Serena killed/captured too... well, that would be interesting... anyway, I promise the next chapter will be the most exciting chapter yet in the story, because I have big plans! Thank you for reading and please REVIEW! **

**(Just so nobody sues me, that thing Pikachu said back there meant: "Okay. So, Kit does not own Pokémon. Done!" So now nobody sue me.) **

**(Seriously.) **


	15. Chapter 15: The Escape

**WAAAAAAUAUUUUGGGHHH! **

**Can't stop crying...! **

_**((Paragraph below = SMALL SPOILER ALERT FOR DIANCIE AND THE COCOON OF DESTRUCTION)) **_

**Man, I just keep watching that scene from Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction over and over - the one when Pikachu dies/turns to stone and Ash cries! OH MY MEW I KEEP ON CRYING I HATE AND LOVE THAT SCENE SOOOO BAD! **

_**((SPOILER IS OVER NOW)) **_

**Whew! Anyway, I don't own Pokémon, so let's just get on with the story. By the way, since I took forever to update this, I have made sure it's an awesome chapter and I know you will love it! **

**... **

The doctor stepped out of the operating room. He cleared his throat, and immediately, Chili, Cress and Iris all looked up.

Iris had split emotions: she was eager to hear any good news about Cilan, but she dreaded any bad news. The doctor's news could be either. Iris's stomach churned with anxiety as he opened his mouth to speak.

"Cilan's injuries were grievous indeed," the doctor began. "We have managed to stabilize him for now, and he has regained consciousness." Iris's eyes lit up, and Chili and Cress were clearly relieved.

"_However," _the doctor continued. Their faces fell as they anticipated what was certain to be bad news. "There was much damage to his internal organs, and though we believe he will pull through alive, we cannot be certain.

Iris's usually dark skin paled considerably. Cilan had to survive. He _had _to. Chili and Cress looked just as shaken by the news.

The doctor cleared his throat to continue. "You may come in to see him, if you would like."

Immediately, Iris was on her feet. Chili and Cress were, too. The doctor opened the door, and they rushed inside.

The first thing Iris saw was the machines. Then she saw him. He was hooked up to several cords, and he wore a simple white hospital nightgown. His hair was a mess, but there was no trace of the blood from before.

Cilan's eyes lit up when he saw them. "I-Iris!" He said hoarsely. "Chili... C-Cress..." His face was tight, and it was clrar he was in pain no matter what, as if it hurt him to so much as breathe.

Chili stumbled over to his brother and dropped to his knees beside the hospital bed. "Cilan," he choked out. "I-I'm sorry... I'm sorry I couldn't be there, I... oh, Cilan!" Chili clutched Cilan's hand.

Cilan smiled weakly. "Chili," he said quietly. "It's okay. It - it wasn't your fault. I'll b-be alright."

"But the doctor said - "

Cilan grimaced. "I - I know. I know w-what the doctor said. But I'll b-be al - alright, no matter w-what happens."

Cress's eyes were brimming with tears. "Cilan, I... I know you can pull through this. You... you have to. Please." Cress's voice cracked.

Cilan looked at his two brothers and a weak smile crossed his face. "I'll - I'll m-make it." He promised. He looked over at Iris, and his green eyes met her maroon ones. "I... I w-won't leave you here alone."

Iris nodded. Her face wore a sad smile. "You - you will make it. I know you will. And, Cilan..." Her voice cracked, and she rushed forward and kissed him on the lips. He was surprised, but he returned the gesture and reached up, wrapping his arms around her torso. When she pulled away, she gave him a sad, shaky smile.

"...I love you." Iris finished, her voice shaky and unsteady as she tried to keep it together. "I - I'll always love you."

Cilan smiled weakly. "I love you, too, Iris." He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

Then the doctor ushered Iris, Chili, and Cress out, so they could work on Cilan more and try to get him through alive. Iris had not seen the gunshot wounds clearly, but she had seen the blood when he had first been shot, and she had seen the pain he was in just now. Iris couldn't fight back the guilt, and neither could she hold back the tears. Iris burst into sobs, and her whole body shook. "It was all my fault!" She cried out.

Iris collapsed onto the sofa in the waiting room once more and eventually cried herself to sleep there.

...

Paul scowled as he stalked down the streets of Veilstone City, his hands in his pockets, his mauve hair being gently tossed by the chilly wind. The Sinnoh region had always been a relatively cold region, and his hometown was no exception. Though it was already late spring, the flowers and trees were only just beginning to bud, and the leaves were a dull gray-green color.

Paul looked around at all the cheery people. He wasn't cheery. He was _never _cheery. Cheery was so uncommon for Paul, it would have been comical to think about Paul being cheery, except that for something to be comical it usually requires cheeriness of some sort. Thus Paul never laughed. _Ever._

Paul lifted his eyes to the small park just ahead of him. He had always sort of liked this place. Not that he would admit to liking anything... but, well, it had its own sort of odd charm to it. Or perhaps Paul liked it simply because it was the only place in Veilstone City where flowers never blossomed, even in summer, even when you cared for them diligently and fertilized them and watered them constantly. This place always seemed dreary. Some people claimed it was haunted, and that sounded pretty pathetic to Paul, but whatever.

Now, Paul slowly walked up to an old oak tree. He reached up and grasped a low branch with one arm, then the other, and hoisted himself up into the tree.

Paul actually liked climbing trees. He felt a sort of feeling he never felt otherwise never felt when he climbed, and he liked it. He loved the feel of the rough bark under his palms, the gentle tickle of the leaves on his skin, and the refreshingly cold breezes that could always be felt at the tops of trees.

As he climbed higher and higher, Paul got to thinking. Some part of his mind drifted to Ash. The raven-haired boy with the Pikachu... the Pikachu who knew Volt Tackle. Well, the Pikachu who _had _known Volt Tackle. Now, Pikachu knew Electro Ball, which was also an amazing move for a Pikachu to know. That kid always managed to be optimistic about almost everything - but then there was Dawn.

Paul thought about Dawn, and for some reason, he felt his mood brighten somewhat. Dawn was always happy, always looking on the bright side, and just plain remarkable, really. She could bring a smile to anyone's face. (Except Paul, but that didn't count. You could duck tape the sides of his mouth up and play the happiest song on earth and give him everything he wanted, and still Paul would refuse to smile.) Her demeanor, her smile, her quote of "no need to worry," _everything _about Dawn was positive and optimistic. Really, the only way to make Dawn _not _smile was Barry. Just _Barry. _Is the name not enough of an explanation?

But as he thought more, Paul's spirits fell again. Dawn was dead. _Dead._ Thinking about her could make him happy for a moment, but grief-stricken the next. Paul didn't even really know why. She was just a girl, after all... and his one of his rival's best friends, at that... but still, Paul felt heartbroken thinking about Dawn's death.

That's when he saw it. From up at the top of the tree, Paul could see the entire landscape of Veilstone City, along with many things far in the distance. And one of those far-off details was a plume of smoke rising into the sky from a large building. Paul's eyes narrowed. He hastily climbed down from the tree and expanded a Pokéball, then tossed it into the air.

"Gliscor, get me to that place over there, with the smoke!" He commanded. He leaped onto Gliscor's back, and they flew off toward the strange plume of smoke.

It was completely impulsive, and yet something in Paul's mind told him that this strange cloud of smoke was more than meets the eye.

...

Ash thought about his Pokémon. If they were here, he could get out of this place, no problem. But they were probably with Professor Oak. After his "death", Ash wasn't sure what May and the others had done with his Pokéballs, but he was fairly sure they'd be with the old Professor. At least, Ash hoped they were.

Ash looked over at Dawn. Deprived of sleep, the blue-haired coordinator hadn't been able to keep herself awake any longer, and she had dropped off to sleep in the corner of the holding cell, using her backpack as a makeshift pillow.

Ash's thoughts returned to his Pokémon. He wondered how they were faring. All of them, not just the ones he had had on hand - all of his Pokémon from Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos... and then there was... then there was...

...Pikachu.

Ash's eyes stung with tears just _thinking _about his best friend. Pikachu had been with him from the very beginning. Now, here he was, without his best buddy and never feeling more alone. Ash wondered how Pikachu was doing. He didn't want to think about it at all, but he couldn't help wondering.

Ash knew he could never give up. He would get out of here, for sure. If he didn't, he would never see Pikachu again, and Ash couldn't bear so much as thinking about that.

_I will get out of here. I have to. I have to do it for Pikachu. _

Ash gritted his teeth in anger. Giovanni! He was nothing but pure, pure evil. To rip his friends away from their lives and their families, all for a selfish plan to conquer the Napaj nation? To tear Ash away from his best friend Pikachu, leaving the latter heartbroken and depressed? To cause families such unbearable grief, thinking their children or grandchildren or siblings had been killed? It was just too much, too much evil for Ash to have any kind of sympathy in any way for the man at the head of Team Rocket.

From now on, whenever Ash spoke Giovanni's name, he would spit it out like poison in his mouth. A vein of hatred ran deep in his soul for that man. Giovanni was a man with a sick mind, twisted morals, and crooked thoughts. He was a man who had, truly, no heart whatsoever.

...

Pikachu padded alongside Emily. Trip was walking on the girl's other side, and the two were swapping stories and exchanging jokes as they filled each other in on their lives. It really had been too long.

Pikachu, though, was only listening. It was certainly a curious fact that the two stories of Emily and Trip seemed to link up perfectly with Ash's and Pikachu's own stories. Just one more reminder that everything in life was connected.

_Everything is connected._ A deep voice entered Pikachu's mind, and Pikachu felt a sense of overwhelming power nearby. The air seemed to crackle with electricity all around it. Pikachu froze.

_You will soon see your place in all of this, little one. But be sure you are not mistaken. Everything is, indeed, connected. You have only just begun to see the truth behind all this. _

Emily stopped. "Pikachu? What's wrong, Pikachu?" She fretted. The voice had disappeared now. Pikachu shook its little head to clear hits thoughts, then nodded to Emily reassuringly. Everything was fine. She didn't need to worry.

Emily nodded and sighed, relieved. "Okay. Great, Pikachu." She turned back to her conversation with Trip whose topic was now Emily's fried bicycle, courtesy of Pikachu. Pikachu, meanwhile, pondered that voice. Some part of Pikachu was sure it had heard that voice before, long, long ago.

...

Max blinked open his eyes.

He wasn't sure how long he had been asleep, but he was awake now. Slowly, slowly, he tried to sit up. Max sighed with relief to find that he could sit up now with hardly any pain at all. His body must have done plenty of healing while he was asleep.

Max looked around the holding cell. He saw Gary, who was sitting up nearby, his head hanging. He appeared to be staring at his lap, but when Max looked closer, he could see that Gary had fallen asleep despite himself. The older boy's lips were blue, and goose bumps covered his arms. Max unwrapped the jacket from around himself and draped it over Gary's shoulders in an attempt to warm him.

Gary stirred a bit. He grunted and his head jerked up, his eyes open wide.

"Wh-wha? Who's there?" Gary gasped. He looked over to see Max, and was clearly relieved. "M-Max. Oh. I guess I drifted off... how's your side?" Gary gestured to the spot where Max had been shot.

Max grinned. "Feelin' fine!" He said cheerfully. Gary couldn't help but smile back. Max tried so hard to be optimistic in the situation they were in, just for Gary's sake. It was clear that Max's efforts to cheer Gary up were working. "So, we're getting out of h - " Gary's eyes widened and he clapped a hand over Max's mouth before the boy could reveal anything. Gary silently shook his head. Realizing what Gary wanted, Max nodded. They were probably being watched every moment, and listened too, as well. They had to be careful what they said and did, or it was game over.

Gary cupped a hand around Max's ear and whispered, "At 11 a.m. today." Max nodded. He reached into his back pocket and sighed, relieved to find that he had not been stripped of his PokéNav. All of his Pokémon, along with Gary's, had been confiscated, but Max's handy device was still with him. Max looked down at the screen and used the little clock in the corner to see the time.

It said 10:38 a.m.

Max looked up at Gary, his eyes wide. It was almost 11 o'clock already... They were breaking out that soon?

Gary nodded. Yeah. They were.

Max's thoughts drifted to Ash and Dawn. They knew about this little operation, and for this to work, they all had to do it together. Teamwork was crucial. Max thought of ZuZu, Treecko, and Poochyena. The three Pokémon had not been with him long, but he already felt like he had a strong bond with the three Pokémon. He missed ZuZu badly, and wanted badly to find it and reunite with his Pokémon, but he knew that must be nothing compared to how Ash felt about Pikachu, and vice versa.

Then Max thought about May, and tears stung his eyes. He pulled off his spare glasses - he always carried some, in case he got kidnapped and his glasses got fried in the process (well, no, really just in case his glasses broke, but whatever) - and wiped his eyes. He couldn't imagine how May felt, but he felt this awful loneliness being separated from her, and he knew she must be feeling crushed, sure that he was dead. His terrible sadness turned to bitter anger. He _had _to get out of here, for May more than anything.

Gary reached out and placed a hand on Max's shoulder. He knew what the younger boy was thinking. In fact, Gary was thinking about a similar situation - that of his grandfather, Professor Oak. The old man had no one left but Gary, and now that he thought Gary was dead... that had to be awful. And it was awful for Gary, and Max as well, to know that loved ones were grieving, but they couldn't do a thing about it.

Max gritted his teeth. He had to get out of this place. He had to get back to his sister. May needed him, and Max knew that _he _needed _her _just as much, if not more so. No matter what, Max was going to see his sister again.

...

Ash wished he had his Pokédex.

He was standing back to back with Dawn, and surrounding them was an army of Pokémon. They were all clearly the same species, and they appeared to be covered in metal armor. Each Pokémon's armor was a different color, so it was like looking at a Pokémon rainbow, and there were probably a dozen or so in all. They were short, but quite strong and speedy, and numbers made up for size in this situation. Each Pokémon was eyeing Ash and Dawn like enemies, and to top it all off, Ash had no idea what any of them was.

So, yeah, a Pokédex would be kind of handy right now...

Ash's thoughts were shattered as one of them - this one's armor was red - lunged at him with a sharp kick. It was lightning fast, but Ash managed to dodge... almost. The attack grazed his arm, and he clutched it, gasping in pain, knowing he was lucky it hadn't been a direct hit. His brain registered the attack as High Jump Kick.

More Pokémon threw attacks their way. A green one used Vine Whip. A yellow one used Thunderpunch. A purple one used Shadow Ball, and the attacks were, again, lightning fast. Ash and Dawn dodged as fast as they could, yelling out warnings to each other, in fast and perfect unison. They had traveled together long enough for it to work.

"Hydro Pump, behind you!" Ash shouted.

"Fire Blast, to your left!" Dawn fired back.

"Mach Punch, coming from the right!" Ash called.

Dawn whipped out her Pokétch. "Ash, it's 10:38! The plan!"

"We can make it!" He shouted back. "Duck!"

Dawn dropped on all fours just as a Gust attack flew over her head. She was on her feet again in a flash. "Ash, we can't do it! We don't even have our Pokémon!"

"Then we get out of here before they land an - " Ash was cut off as a Double Edge hit him right in the chest. He gave a strangled cry and flew backwards, landing on his back on the ground.

"Ash, no!" Dawn screamed.

Ash struggled to his feet. He was holding his chest, and though the pain was horrible, he was pretty sure nothing was broken.

"Dawn," he gasped. "The - the door... make them h-hit the d-d-door.." He stumbled and fell to his knees, still winded from the attack he had suffered. But Dawn understood exactly what he meant.

Still dodging attacks, Dawn made her way over to the door of their cell. She stood still for a half a second, letting the strange Pokémon prepare attacks, and then dodged at the last second. She flung herself to the ground, and heard the many attacks whizzing over her head. Dawn winced as she heard them hit the door, and there was a huge _crash _over her head. Dawn stood slowly to find a gaping hole in the door's many bars and locks. She turned back to Ash and gasped in horror.

While Dawn had been getting the Pokémon to open the door, some of them had been battering Ash with attacks. He had trouble dodging at first because of the Double Edge, but after a few more direct hits, he crumpled to his knees, hands curled over his head, and just let them hit. He took about ten or so hits before Dawn's work was done with the door.

Without another thought, Dawn threw herself in front of Ash. The next few attacks hit her, but she ignored them (or tried to) as she helped him to his feet. He was, by now, covered in bruises, cuts, and scratches. It looked like he had just been beat up. Maybe that was because he _had _just been beat up...

Dawn stumbled over to the door, supporting Ash to the point where she was almost carrying him. They struggled out through the hole and ran for their lives, knowing that some sort of silent alarm had surely been set off when the strange Pokémon made that hole in the door. Dawn was gasping for breath, and Ash was coughing and gasping and choking on the very air he breathed. The relentless Pokémon attacks had weakened him to the point where breathing was a struggle and it hurt to stand.

Dawn began to hear footsteps above them and behind them. Soon, Team Rocket members would be swarming the place hunting them down. Dawn knew that they would have to get up to a higher level, since they must be underground, find an exit, and get out. It seemed impossible, but it had to work.

Spying a door with a stair symbol to her left, Dawn quickly led Ash into the door. The corridor they had been running through would be full of Rockets in a matter of seconds, but the stairs would hopefully stay clear for a little bit longer.

Max and Gary suddenly burst in through another door. They had been on the level just above Ash and Dawn, and they joined up and began to stumble up the stairs together as quickly as they possibly could. Though it was still only 10:46 now, so Ash and Dawn had been a bit early, Gary and Max had made their move and busted out as soon as they heard the feet of Team Rocket members outside their door. They realized right away that it must have been Ash and Dawn, making their escape a bit earlier than scheduled.

"Rockets... behind us... coming!" Max gasped.

"Us... too..." Ash choked out.

"Ash... hurt! What... happened?" Gary panted.

"Tell... Tell you later..." Dawn replied, gasping for breath. There were footsteps coming from behind them, and from above. They were trapped. All four of them froze.

"Closet!" Ash coughed. He yanked open the door to the stuffy little supply closet and collapsed into it. Dawn, Max, and Gary all followed him into the tiny space.

Max's eyes widened upon spotting a small window. It was small, but a person could fit through for sure, especially someone small like himself. "The window!" He whispered frantically. "Get through the window!"

Gary scrambled to open it. Dawn helped Ash through. They were just barely on ground level, and Ash climbed through and crawled onto the ground outside. He stood shakily on the soft grass and disappeared into the bushes nearby.

Dawn went next. Then Gary helped Max through, and Dawn helped the little boy to a hiding spot near Ash's. Gary was just about to clamber through the window himself...

...when someone threw open the door...

...and seized Gary by the shoulders. Gary screamed. He was yanked backwards, his eyes wide with fear and shock. Dawn stared in horror, as did Ash and Max, but neither said a word for fear of giving away their locations.

Gary gritted his teeth and gave Dawn a look that said, "Go. I'll be fine. Just _go._"

Dawn nodded, tears in her eyes. As more Rockets began to file out of the window, knowing that she and the others were hiding somewhere there, Dawn noticed a plume of smoke rising into the air from a chimney of sorts on the building's roof. But that wasn't what shocked her.

What shocked her was a teenaged boy, with shaggy mauve hair and cold eyes, sitting atop a Gliscor. He hovered in the air near the rising column of smoke, looking down at the building and all the Rockets, as if he were searching for something.

Dawn would recognize that face anywhere.

It was _Paul._

...

Ritchie grinned at his Pikachu, Sparky. They were doing some special training together, and Sparky had just mastered a new move: Iron Tail.

Ritchie knew it was uncommon for a Pikachu to learn Iron Tail, and he was proud of Sparky. It had taken awhile, but they had finally gotten it right.

After Ash's death, Ritchie definitely felt terrible. Grief found him for sure, Blbut he had never really been exceptionally close with the black-haired trainer, so it didn't exactly devastated Ritchie. He had been back up and on his feet after about a week, and went right back to training with his Pokémon, battling, and such.

Now, Ritchie gave Sparky a high-five. "Great job, buddy!" He congratulated. Sparky cheered, "Pika!" excitedly in response, and Ritchie grinned. Sparky hopped up onto his shoulder, and the two went back into Ritchie's house.

They had been practicing in Ritchie's front lawn. Smelling a delicious late breakfast being cooked by his mom, Ritchie smiled. His mom was the best cook in the world. He checked he kitchen clock - 10:38 a.m., so that meant they had been training for just over an hour.

That was when Ritchie heard the voice.

_The Prophecy of Elemental Aura, to be fulfilled at last,_ the voice said. The air around Ritchie cracked with heat. He felt a powerful prescience nearby. _You will play a role in the Prophecy, young trainer. You will play most interesting part indeed. _

...

**Oooooohh! **

**That took awhile... a LONG while! Thank you for waiting, though. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! The action scenes were sure fun to write. The next chapter will come much sooner, I can promise you that, and the excitement will surely continue! **

**PLEASE REVIEW! You know I love it when you do! **


	16. Chapter 16: Dreams and Prophecies

**Hi! **

**So, at some point in some a/n in some chapter in THIS story, I bet y'all a KitKat bar that I would get sued or something like that. I also promised at the end of the last chapter that this chapter would come sooner. Well, I didn't, and it didn't, so consider this virtual KitKat bar your reward! Everyone gets one! No seconds! (I bet you a Hershey bar someone WILL ask for seconds now...) **

**Well, enjoy your virtual KitKat's as you enjoy this virtually shared story! Thank you for your reviews, because I just KNOW you will review when you finish this chapter... am I RIGHT or am I RIGHT? Prove me RIGHT! **

**(Oh... and I don't own Pokémon! But everybody should know that by now. If you don't, get your hiney over to those first 14 chapters!) (And the prologue!) **

**... **

As he watched Ash, Max and Dawn get to safety and prepared to get out himself, Gary felt hands seize him by the shoulders. He was yanked back roughly from the window, and in that moment, he knew he wasn't getting out; at least, not today, he wasn't. Gary saw Dawn's horror, and Ash's urge to yell out Gary's name and leap to the rescue. But Gary just gave them a look that said, "Go. I'll be fine. Just _go._" Then he was slammed to the ground, and everything went black.

Gary's dreams were full of scenes, images and sounds that he couldn't explain. They confused him, but some part of Gary knew that these were far more than simply pieces of his imagination.

He saw Ash and a honey-haired girl Gary didn't recognize trudging through deep snow, while icy winds battered their faces. Behind them, a group of kids struggled through the snow as well, holding each other, barely recognizable beneath their tattered coats and scarves. As Gary watched, one of the children - a little blond girl who couldn't have been older than eight - stumbled and collapsed into the snow.

Then the scene changed, and Gary saw three great bird Pokémon circling around high up in the sky. They flew in such a fashion that they appeared to be playing ring-around-a-rosy, and Gary recognized them as Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres. Gary watched as Articuno disappeared in a miniature blizzard. Next went Zapdos, with a shrieking cry, in a huge lightning bolt. Metres, now alone, slowly sank towards the ground and then vanished in a blaze of fire.

Then Gary saw Dialga, Palkia, Xerneas, and Yveltal. He could hear Meloetta's song echoing in his mind. Then the song was abruptly cut off with a cry of pain, and the four Legendaries before him vanished.

The final thing Gary saw in his dream was a face, one which he hated. It was the face of Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket. There was an evil grin on his face, but soon, the intimidating expression disappeared and was replaced by utter shock. Giovanni was holding a red-and-white hat with a Pokéball on it, and there was blood spattered on the hat. Gary watched Giovanni's face go pale, watched his hands tremble. A knot formed in Gary's stomach, and he felt the terrible feeling of all hope being lost. Even as the image faded, Gary felt as if his very life energy had been sucked out completely.

Gary gasped and sat upright. He was breathing fast, and his eyes were wild with shock. Gary could tell from his surroundings that he was back in a holding cell somewhere. His head throbbed, and his entire body ached. Gary wondered if it was the same cell as the one he and Max had been held on before, but he guessed not. After Gary and Max broke out once, Gary could be almost sure that this cell was more heavily guarded and protected. Gary didn't care, though. He would get out. In the end, he would.

Gary thought of his grandfather, and how he must be grieving. Gary had to trust that Ash, Dawn, and Max would make it out, and that they'd get the word out that: a) Team Rocket was planning to take over the Napaj nation, and b) they were all alive - Ash, Dawn, Max and Gary. All of them. Then Professor Oak would know for sure.

Gary knew that if the word got out, somebody would rescue him, or at least try. And even if no one did, Gary could get out of here by himself. He looked around. There was no window or door in sight. All his surroundings were clearly made of cement. There was no furniture or anything at all - just a barren, cramped, cement cube of space.

Well, Gary _hoped _he could get out of here by himself, at least. It was looking doubtful. And after the last attempt he had made, with Ash and Max and Dawn, Gary was pretty sure he would be watched and guarded much more closely.

Well, Gary thought. _It_ _looks like I'll be here awhile. _

...

Riding atop his Gliscor, peering down intently at the crazy scene below him, Paul spotted something. It was nothing significant - just a small movement, a faint rustling in a bush, and a flash of blue. Yet it was a shade of blue that Paul was quite familiar with, however...

"Gliscor, fly over to those trees, but make sure we aren't seen by those Rockets." Paul said coldly. Gliscor obliged quickly. The Flying Type landed softly on the ground near where he had seen the rustling, and Paul slowly walked towards the exact spot.

When he saw her, his breath caught. He saw a slim girl's figure in a short, tattered dress, with pale blue hair. He somehow expected that it would be her, but he was still shocked by the sight of her. There was no doubt about it; it was Dawn Berlitz. The one who was supposed to be dead. For a moment, Paul was speechless, but he quickly recovered.

"Dawn." He stated simply. Dawn smiled, clearly relieved that he was there.

"Paul!" She replied excitedly. "Oh, Paul, I saw you up there with Gliscor and I was just so shocked! Then you flew up and over, so I guess I expected you were coming from behind, and by the time you got here I'd gotten over the surprise, but that's just so amazing that you showed up! Oh, I could just hug you right now!" And Dawn did just that, leaping forward and hugging him happily. She drew back, smiling in excitement. Shock registered on Paul's face, but the expression quickly went sour.

"I don't like being touched." He stated simply. "Come on. We need to get out of here." Dawn nodded, then turned on her heel. She made a silent gesture to a bush, and slowly, two people stepped out of that bush: a young boy with dark blue hair and large, round glasses, and an older boy with black hair, auburn eyes, and a tattered cap on his head. Paul's breath caught. He didn't recognize the little one, but he knew the raven-haired kid all too well.

"Ash," Paul whispered. He noted Ash's bruises and scrapes, not to mention his badly torn clothing and the small splatters of blood. Ash gave Paul his trademark crooked grin, but it was halfhearted. Ash was clearly in bad shape.

"Look," Ash said hoarsely. "Dawn and Max, go with Paul on Gliscor. Then you can come back for me, if I'm still here."

Paul frowned. It was true, his Gliscor _would _only seat three people, max. But why was Ash sacrificing himself for his friends? "Right," Paul replied, his voice tight. "When we get out of here, you've got a lot of explaining to do."

Paul helped Dawn get seated on Gliscor. She helped Max onto her lap, and he got on last. Then they set off into the air, riding the strong currents of chilly wind that Sinnoh was so well known for.

Ash watched them go. He then sneaked back into the bushes and hid there, awaiting Paul's return. Ash drew deeper and deeper into the foliage as Rockets began to pour into the woods, nearing his hiding spot every second.

Finally, one of the grunts reached a hand into Ash's bush, pulled aside the leaves, and spotted him. Ash jumped up and ran. The grunt yelled out a cry of alarm to his comrades. He pointed toward Ash, who was running like a Rapidash in an effort to get the heck out of there.

The other Rockets began to pull out Pokémon. An Arcanine thrust a Flamethrower in Ash's direction, and Ash dodged, but the flames caught onto a tree. Within minutes, the entire stretch of woods near the Sinnoh region Team Rocket Building - from what Ash had deduced, he was sure it was pretty much Team Rocket's Sinnoh base - was blazing like one huge bonfire. Ash covered his eyes with one arm and ran like an even faster Rapidash. He had to get out of this...

Finally, Ash saw the edge of the woods - the spot where the fire ended! He tumbled head over heels and, at last, was out of the woods - literally. Ash struggled to his feet and began to cough up blood. He wiped his mouth and started to walk. In which direction, Ash had no idea; he was just walking. Ash didn't know it, but his long run through the flaming woods had taken him farther than he expected. He just kept on walking through the middle of nowhere.

Ash lost tracked of how long he walked, and how far. His legs were numb. He knew it had been hours, at least. Ash's eyelids drooped, and he felt he might drop and fall asleep in the middle of walking. He was already pretty beat up from that strange Pokémon attack.

Finally, Ash couldn't walk any further. He collapsed under the shelter of a relatively large bush, curled up like a wild Pokémon, and slept.

...

Dawn held tightly to Paul's waist as they flew. Max was in her lap, between the two older trainers, and his eyes were shut tightly. It was a bumpy ride, to say the least. Dawn knew that Paul would probably rather not have her arms wrapped around him, but she was absolutely terrified this high up. To her relief, he didn't object.

"Will Ash be okay?" Max asked fearfully. Dawn smiled down at the little boy. She knew Ash was pretty good at coming out on top - good Arceus, he managed to survive a burning house collapsing on top of him - but she was still uneasy about leaving him on his own with a bunch of Rockets hunting for him. Well, who wouldn't have been?

Still, Dawn tried to keep Max's spirits up. "I'm sure he'll be fine. Ash always seems to come out on top. I'm sure you know what I mean."

Max nodded. He had traveled with Ash for long enough to know how true that was. Yet there was still a bit of worry shining in his eyes as he looked back up at Dawn. "I hope he can come out on top this time..."

Paul's Gliscor swooped down to land on the roof of a tall building.

"The world thinks you're dead," the mauve-haired trainer said simply. "I don't think you'd better be seen walking down the streets of a big city like Veilstone, so stay here." Then Paul leaped back onto Gliscor and they flew off, gliding on the rough winds, Paul's purple hair ruffled by the sharp breeze.

_He sure looks cool like that,_ Dawn thought. She found that her cheeks were turning pink as she watched Paul, and quickly looked away. _Paul might not always be the nicest guy to be around, and yet... _

...

"Send out twenty. I can't spare more, but we can't afford to send less. Surely twenty with three Fire Type Pokémon each can capture it?"

"I am not sure, Giovanni. We don't even kn - "

"We have the general area where it is. That's enough. It's just one Pokémon, after all!"

"I'm really not sure about th - "

"Go! Twenty men is plenty enough. You _will _capture Articuno. How can you fail?"

The man nodded quickly. He was short and slim, and his eyes tainted with malice. People often underestimated Carr for his size. What they did not know, however, was the amazing brain that lay behind those evil eyes of his.

Carr quickly left the room. Giovanni watched him as he left, and then as soon as the door was shut, he spun his chair back and faced the large floor-to-ceiling window, petting his Persian. At last, a little bit of peace. Soon, however, that peace was shattered.

"Giovanni, sir?"

Giovanni spun around quickly. "What is it, Saturn?" His face was sour. You interrupt one of the Boss's peaceful moments, it had better be important.

Saturn shifted uncomfortably. "Boss, sir, there has been a breakout. Four captives made an attempt at escape, and three got out."

"Who?!" Giovanni spat. This was definitely important, but it wasn't exactly good news.

"The one called Gary Oak, we managed to seize at the last minute. The three who escaped were called Max Maple, Dawn Berlitz, and Ash Ketchum."

Giovanni's eyes narrowed. "Get out. Get out of my sight! You _will _recapture them, do you hear me? You _will!" _

...

Paul stared coldly at the raging fire that was once forest and trees. It was too late for him to get Ash out of there. But Paul knew that what Dawn had said was right: Ash had a way of coming out all right. Still, if Ash _did _come out of this inferno, he could be anywhere.

"Gliscor, fly us higher. We need a better view."

Gliscor obliged, and Paul soon caught sight of a small figure walking away from the blaze. Paul and Gliscor flew closer, and Paul confirmed that it was definitely Ash. But before he could tell the raven-haired trainer's name or fly any closer or anything, a sharp gust of wind caught him off guard. Gliscor lost its balance, and trainer and Pokémon went plunging to the ground. Paul gave a scream of fear, realizing he had absolutely no control over his situation.

Paul shut his eyes tight, preparing for the final, crushing slam into the ground he would feel before he died.

At the last moment, Gliscor got its balance, and managed to slow their fall to the point where it wasn't fatal. Yet it was still a hard hit. Paul let out a groan as he was slammed into the ground, and then everything went black.

...

Ritchie frowned at the screen of his laptop. He was looking up _powerful voice in head,_ because he really had no other way to describe it. The results were mixed, of course, but there was one link that interested Ritchie...

_Hearing the voice of Legendary Pokémon in your head. Click this link if you have the sense of a powerful being nearby, or hear a voice in your head at a random time. May have a connection to the Aura Prophecy. _

Ritchie clicked the link. The article read:

_There have been many tales of Legendary Pokémon being able to use Telepathy to convey their thoughts, almost as if they are "speaking". If you hear a strange voice in your head and sense a powerful presence nearby, you may be in the presence of a Legendary. _

_In a recently reported case, the Trainer who experienced the voice claimed that he felt an Aura of heat around him, and he was offered lifesaving advice from a strange voice. The Trainer also claimed that he saw Moltres, flying high above him, who then vanished. If you have experienced something like this, you were likely in the presence of Moltres. _

Ritchie's eyes widened. Moltres?!

He kept reading, but nothing else was relevant to his case. He did see one thing mentioning the Aura Prophecy, but it didn't give him any good explanation of what that was.

Moltres, huh? _Well, that's certainly interesting... _

...

Pikachu continued to ponder that voice as it walked at Emily's heels. It was sure it recognized that voice, but where...?

"Hey, Trip, do you know anything about... Hearing voices?" Pikachu's ears shot up, realizing what Emily was referring to. But how would Emily know about Pikachu's experience... unless...?

"What do you mean?" Trip replied, clearly confused.

"I mean, I heard a powerful voice in my head the other day, and everything felt weirdly cold around me. I was wondering if you would know anything about that?"

Pikachu froze. It had heard something just like that, but instead of the air being cold, it felt full of electricity...

"Well, people say that some Pokémon can use Telepathy to convey thoughts to people, especially Legendaries. And as for being cold... well, is there an Ice- or Water-Type Legendary for your region? There are, like, three birds or something, right?" Trip mused.

"Oh, _yeah!"_ Emily snapped her fingers. "That's right! Articuno!"

Pikachu blinked. It was all coming back now. Pikachu knew where it had heard the voice before. It was from about four years ago, back when Ash and Pikachu were traveling together in Kanto.

The voice Pikachu had heard was, no doubt, the voice of Zapdos.

...

**Okay! Well, I think I uncovered some plot stuff there... are you guys excited? I sure hope so! Please review! Oh, and I decided to keep Serena alive due to a REVIEW! **

**...or did I? YOU WILL NEVER KNOW! (Well, you will eventually, I guess...) **

**Anyway, please REVIEW! Did I say that already? And enjoy that KitKat! **


	17. Chapter 17: A Reason to be Grateful

**Hiya folks! It's me, Kit! **

**So, someone asked me for seconds. It was—can you guess?—Ty8, my good buddy! So thanks to her, y'all NOW get a Hershey's Cookies'n'Cream bar. I won't bet anything anymore. My Halloween candy is running low. So enjoy that Hershey bar, and also consider it compensation… I didn't exactly get this chapter out too quickly! But it's here now! Expect more propheciness and action! **

**Max: Propheciness isn't a word, Kit. **

**Ash: It isn't? **

**Misty: Seriously, Ash?! **

**Me: Um… I don't own Pokémon? **

**Ty8: Hi! Read my stories 'cause I am fabulous! **

**Iris: 'Cause she is fabulous! That's right! **

**Me: Oh yeah, and read Ty8's stories. Iris recommended her! That's kind of a big deal, huh? Okay, on with the chapter now… **

…

_The Legends of Creation, Space and Time, are wakeful. The Prophecy of Elemental Aura will be fulfilled. There will be struggle, there will be hardship, and you, young Trainer, will soon discover a power that goes deeper than legend or prophecy. You will see what this power truly means. _

Blurred images danced in Paul's mind. The voice sounded distant, yet at the same time, he could hear it clearly. His mind didn't fully register the words he heard, and what he did understand completely confused him. The best way to describe the feeling, Paul supposed, was _fuzzy._ His brain felt _fuzzy_.

Paul _hated_ fuzzy.

Gradually, Paul's senses came into focus, and the fuzzy feeling began to disappear. He let a groan escape his chest as he slowly regained consciousness. The sky was above him. That was a good sign. It's always nice to know the sky is above you. There was grass beneath him—also a plus. All of his Pokémon were apparently out of their Pokéballs and standing over him, clearly worrying for their trainer.

Paul had a hard time deciding whether that was good or bad.

Slowly, and with another groan, Paul struggled to sit up. To his shock, Torterra gave him a gentle nudge from behind to help Paul gain his balance.

_Why is Torterra helping me? Why would it care about me at all?_ Despite his typically cold attitude toward his Pokémon, Paul accepted the kind gesture from Torterra. He fumbled for his Pokéballs and returned all of his Pokémon, one by one, with the exception of Torterra. Paul gripped the sturdy branches of the small tree on Torterra's back as he attempted to stand. His legs shook. Must have been quite a fall… but then, he knew exactly how bad of a fall that must have been. Paul was fairly sure that Gliscor had come out of the fall okay, or had recovered in the time that Paul was knocked out.

_How long was I out, anyway? _Paul frowned, thinking of all that might have happened while he was unconscious. Was Dawn worried? How long had he left her on top of that huge building? Was Ash okay? Was Ash even alive? _You know, maybe I won't think about that._

Paul gritted his teeth in pain as he tried to walk. He looked down, seeing Torterra looking up at him. In his Pokémon's eyes, Paul saw absolute trust and love. It caught him off guard. Did Torterra really care that much about him? Did his other Pokémon care that much?

As he looked into Torterra's eyes, Paul felt a strange sensation he had never felt before. It gave him energy and made him feel really alive.

For the first time in a long time, Paul allowed himself a smile.

…

Articuno let out a furious screech. Normally, it inhabited a special island in the Orange Archipelago, near Shamouti Island, but it had fled to the freezing Mt. Silver in Johto to escape capture by Team Rocket. Now, it was surrounded.

Fiery Pokémon attacks hit Articuno from all around. With another cry of fury, Articuno slammed its wings outwards, sending gale-force winds at all of the attackers. A few went plunging deep into crevasses, never to return, screaming for their lives. Most, however, managed to keep their ground. A few more Fire Spin and Flamethrower attacks was all it took for the icy bird to fall, weakened, to the ground.

Cries of triumph erupted from all around. A net was cast about Articuno's weakened body, and the net began to zap Articuno of all its energy.

It was done. Articuno had been captured by Team Rocket.

"Well, well, well." A malicious grin spread across Carr's face as he planted one foot on Articuno's back. "One down, two to go. The Kanto region is ours."

…

Dawn was tired of waiting.

It had been days now—three, to be exact. It was pure luck that there was a little storage shed near the back of the rooftop, offering shelter from the freezing wind, dry foods like crackers and such, and bottled water. When the sky darkened, Dawn set up a little bed for Max on one of the shelves using Gary's jacket and a bright blue tarp that was also in the shed. Then she went back out and kept watch for Paul until her Pokétch told her it was midnight. It was then that Dawn went back into the shed, curled up on the shelf just above Max's, and slept.

She woke up the second day and continued to keep watch. When Paul still didn't come, she gave up and spent the third day in the shed, playing simple handclap games and such with Max to stay occupied. She showed him how to make a paper Swanna out of some old newspaper, and cut out Pokéball shapes from the edges of the tarp Max had slept on.

On the morning of the fourth day, Dawn awoke to hear a loud _thump_ outside on the rooftop. She immediately leaped up and flung open the shed door. Dawn's hands shook with excitement. It was Paul and Ash and Gliscor—it had to be!

But when Dawn looked up, she didn't see Paul, Ash, and Gliscor. She stared at the incredible sight before her.

There were nine Pokéballs there, just sitting on the rooftop.

Before a fierce wind could blow them away, Dawn scooped up the Balls. She peered at them one by one, and felt about ready to cry.

Azurill, Treecko, and Poochyena. Those were Max's Pokémon.

Mamoswine, Quilava, Togekiss, Pachirisu, Lopunny, and…

…Piplup.

Squinting up at the sky, Dawn was sure she could see a tiny green-white-and-pink shape bounding off on the wind in the distance. A familiar voice echoed in her mind, and Dawn was immediately shocked. She almost dropped the Balls.

_It's thank Shaymin time! Aren't you grateful? _

…

When Ash woke up, he admittedly felt better. Certainly not by much, but at least _better._

Well, sort of.

As he crawled out from the bush, Ash began to cough up blood again. His shoulders shook violently as he hacked and coughed and retched.

Yeah, maybe he wasn't really that much better.

Ash wiped his mouth and stood shakily. His legs were sore from walking so far before he had fallen asleep. He had probably slept for at least a day, maybe more. As Ash began to keep walking, he suddenly heard a voice from somewhere close behind him.

"What the… is that… _Ash?!_"

Ash nearly jumped out of his skin. Then cold fear washed over him. He was supposed to be dead. Someone had clearly found him, and that was most definitely _not _good…

Ash turned to face whoever had spoken his name. When he saw the face of the speaker, he was nearly as shocked as she appeared to be.

"May?!"

…

**Dun dun dun! **

**Well, there's your chapter! The next one will hopefully be out this weekend! Your welcome for three cliffhangers! I love you all! Gary says he hates you! So does Paul! So does—aw, forget it, stop being negative, guys! **

**Well, gotta go now! Bye! **

**I LOVE REVIEWS AND YOU KNOW IT! **


	18. Chapter 18: Oh, Hello, May

**Hey there! **

**So, SOMEONE (not naming any names—*cough*Typhlosion8*cough*—) says she does NOT like May 'cause May apparently turns everything into AdvanceShipping. **

**NO. YOU'RE WRONG. I SWEAR! MAY AND ASH WILL, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, BE TOGETHER IN ANY WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM IN THIS FIC. DID YOU NOT SEE THAT LITTLE NOTE ABOUT CONTESTSHIPPING IN THE SYNOPSIS?! **

**I don't own Pokémon. Enjoy! Thanks to MeliaAntiqua and Ty8 for donating candy to me! You all now get Smarties to enjoy with this chapter! **

…

"How is Articuno doing?"

"It's getting weaker by the minute." Carr smirked as he reported the news to his boss. It had certainly been easier than he had expected to capture Articuno.

"Excellent. Have you prepared the EM device?" While he had not been happy about the escape of his human targets, Articuno's capture had put Giovanni in high spirits.

"All is ready, sir. Shall we begin?" Carr was anxious to gain full control of Articuno. Once that was achieved, they would surely be unstoppable.

Giovanni nodded. "Indeed. And bring in the boy as well—Gary Oak. We'll need him for sure."

Carr nodded quickly and exited Giovanni's office. Once all was quiet and peaceful once more, the leader of Team Rocket let his thoughts drift. He thought of Gary and the other one, Ash. Giovanni knew of the special Aura which Ash and his friends possessed. The EM device would hopefully be just as effective on Ash as on Articuno; perhaps in a different way, but certainly just as effective.

"Sir, we have confirmed the location of the boy called Ash."

Giovanni looked up to see a grunt standing in the office. A thin smile crept onto his face. "Perfect."

Nothing was going to stop Team Rocket from taking control of the Napaj nation.

_Nothing._

…

When Drew presented May with tickets to a ferry bound for Sinnoh, she had thought he was crazy. Then he told her why.

"May," he'd said. "The Wallace Cup will be held there soon. I thought you would really enjoy competing there. It might help you to concentrate on something fun—something you know you love." He had sounded so eager, May had to agree. She did need something to help her be happy. Without Ash and her little brother, May felt somewhat hollow. Maybe this would make her feel better…

A couple of days after their arrival, May had decided a nice walk in the woods seemed like a good idea. She had been training with her Pokémon for so long, without much rest, and it had made her feel almost happy. The thrill of Pokémon training and watching them use their moves to create such beauty left her breathless and excited. A walk in the woods sounded like such a good idea.

Maybe it was fate; maybe it was pure luck and nothing else; maybe Arceus looked down and said, "Oh, yeah, those two kids need to meet up in the woods now." Whatever the case, she found _him_.

_Him_, as in _Ash._ Ash Ketchum.

There he was, stumbling through the underbrush, his tattered cap on his head and his black hair a total mess. But it was him, she was sure. And when May choked out his name and Ash turned toward her and she saw those auburn eyes of his, she was even more sure.

"Ash!" She gasped again. "No… but you… but I thought…"

Quickly recovering from the shock of seeing her, Ash gave May a weak grin. "Long story short, nope, I'm not dead."

"Oh… oh, Ash!" May burst into tears and threw herself at him, crushing him in a hug. "I thought… thought for sure you were… you were dead, and…" May could hardly speak, she was crying so hard. Ash returned the friendly embrace.

May slowly pulled away and wiped tears from her eyes. "Ash…" She did not want to ask this question, but if she didn't, May knew she couldn't live with the suspense. "What about… what about Dawn, and Gary, and… and Max? Are they…?"

"Yeah. Yeah, May, they're alive." Ash smiled happily.

May nearly screamed with joy. Her little brother was alive! Instead of screaming, she did a little twirl of excitement. Then she hugged Ash again and started crying once more. She felt like flying. She couldn't express her elation. It was just… overwhelming.

"Where are they?" May said suddenly.

Ash sighed sadly. "Dawn and Max, they're safe somewhere. Paul got them and took them to safety. I barely got out, but Gary…" Ash's breath caught, and May's eyes widened in fear. "Gary didn't make it. Didn't make it out."

"What do you mean?" May said, her voice barely a whisper.

"We were being held captive in the Sinnoh region Team Rocket base, May." Ash gripped May's shoulders tightly. "We barely got out. But the Rockets… they got Gary. I think he's still alive, but they got him, May. And I don't know about Dawn and your brother. It's probably been at least two, maybe three or four days since I saw them. I'm not really sure for how long I was asleep."

May nodded. Her happiness faltered slightly, but she wouldn't let Ash see that. She offered him a smile and took his hand. "Come on. Drew and I have a room in the Pokémon Center. Put this on—" May slipped off her hoodie and handed it to Ash. "—and put the hood up. Look down at your feet a lot, okay? Don't let anyone see your face."

Ash nodded. He pulled on the hoodie and tucket his hat in the folds of his shirt. But before May set off towards the city—it was Veilstone City, she told him—Ash stopped her with a hand.

"May, where… where is Pikachu?" Ash said quietly. His eyes shone with worry and loneliness. May felt tears coming into her eyes. Oh, poor Ash… he must have been so upset, to be kept away from Pikachu for so long!

"He's with Professor Oak." May responded. She, too, was unaware of the fact that the Professor had made the decision to hand off Pikachu to a newbie trainer. Ash smiled with relief. He was glad Pikachu was safe. "All right, let's get a move on, Ash! I can't wait to see Drew's face…"

Ash laughed. "That'll be interesting for sure." That's when it occurred to him—why would May and Drew, of all people, be staying in a Pokémon room together? Ash let it drop, though. There were probably a billion other things to worry about, now that word was surely going to get out about Ash being alive after all.

_I've got a heck of a lot of explaining to do,_ Ash thought. _This is sure gonna be interesting._

And he followed May into Veilstone City.

…

Pikachu sighed. Emily was sleeping a few feet away, curled up in a sleeping bag beside Trip's. Skitty was nestled in her arms, clearly quite comfortable there. It looked like Emily and Skitty were beginning to form a bond much like Ash and Pikachu's. They looked so happy together…

…just like Ash and Pikachu used to. But gone were the carefree days of the past, where Pikachu and Ash were inseparable, where they could do anything together, where there was nothing to worry about or to be afraid of. Because now Pikachu and Ash weren't together anymore. The thought weighed on Pikachu's chest heavily, to the point that it hurt.

A tear slid down Pikachu's little red cheek. Lying down on the soft grass, warmed by the sun which had beat down harshly only a few hours before, Pikachu should have been very comfortable. But all the little Pokémon could think about was Ash. Seeing Emily, so blissfully oblivious to what was going on in Pikachu's mind, made Pikachu think about how it used to sleep curled up in someone else's arms, whose hugged Pikachu close when it was cold and always told Pikachu it was okay, even when it wasn't. Ash loved Pikachu deeply, and Pikachu loved Ash just as much.

Memories were all fresh in Pikachu's mind, memories from over the course of the past four years—Ash and Pikachu's memories. While Pikachu knew Ash was alive and trusted that they would find each other again, it could hardly bear the loneliness, and not knowing where Ash was or how he was holding up weighed on Pikachu's mind each day.

"Pikapi," Pikachu whispered. "Pikapi…"

Pikachu closed its eyes, its small yellow body trembling with the effort of holding in tears. Yet still, tears rolled down Pikachu's face, and it held back the cries of loneliness that were threatening to burst out.

Eventually, Pikachu sank into a troubled sleep. It was peaceful at first, but horrible dreams soon plagued the little Pokémon. Pikachu tossed back and forth, its breath growing short and ragged, letting out short, terrorized cries every now and then. Pikachu couldn't be without Ash any longer! No, no, no!

_Ash, where are you? I need you, Ash! I need you! _

…

Dawn's hands shook as she held the Pokéball in one hand. She pressed the button with her thumb, and in a flash of white light, Piplup appeared.

Piplup leaped out and spun midair, giving a proud cry of "Piplup!" before landing squarely on the floor of the shed. Dawn cracked a smile. Always a proud performer—that was her Piplup in a nutshell! Unable to hold back any longer, Dawn raced forward and scooped up Piplup in an enormous bear hug, falling to her knees as she did so.

"Oh, Piplup!" Dawn sobbed. "I'm sorry, Piplup… I'm sorry… I'm so glad you're all right, Piplup!" Tears flowed openly down her cheeks as she held the little Water-type close. Piplup was crying, too, so glad to be reunited with its trainer.

Dawn stood with Piplup in her arms. Max's reunion with his Pokémon had been tearful as well. One by one, she released her other Pokémon. They were all more than happy to see their trainer again.

Dawn gave Max a quick hug. Then something occurred to her. "You know, Max, Togekiss is a Flying-type," Dawn mused.

"Oh. Why's that so…" Max trailed off, and Dawn smiled as she saw realization hit him.

"We can finally get off of this rooftop!" She concluded. Piplup cheered, and Max let out an excited "Yes!" All of the Pokémon, both Dawn's and Max's, looked pleased at the prospect of getting down from this place. The fierce winds made it both unpleasant and dangerous to be out on the rooftop, but the shed was kind of cramped and stuffy. Getting down was definitely something to be excited about.

Dawn recalled all of her Pokémon except Togekiss, even Piplup, whom she tended to keep out of his ball. She didn't want to possibly lose him on the flight to the ground. Max recalled his three Pokémon, as well. Then Dawn helped him climb onto Togekiss's back. She sat behind him, her arms wrapped around his waist protectively.

_Thank you, Shaymin,_ Dawn thought, well, gratefully. _Thank you so much. I really am grateful, you know. I really am. _

"Okay, Togekiss. Can you fly us down? Land right there, in the middle of that street." Dawn requested. Togekiss chirped happily and obliged.

While they were glided towards the ground, Max whispered to Dawn, "But someone's bound to notice us—and the whole of Sinnoh and probably all of Napaj thinks we're dead!"

"I know," Dawn replied with a sigh. "But think of your family and your friends. Think of May. Think of all of them. The world's gotta find out eventually, and once all this about us being alive gets out to the media—and I guarantee you, it will—then they'll all know, and it'll be quicker than us seeking them out, one by one, or calling them at the Pokémon Center or whatever."

Max paused. Then he thought about May, and he nodded. "Yeah. You're right."

They landed. Dawn smiled and thanked Togekiss before recalling the Pokémon. She squeezed Max's hand reassuringly and waited.

Ten seconds.

Twenty seconds.

Thirty seconds…

"Hey, look! Isn't that the girl who was supposed to be dead? And that boy, too!"

_And here we go,_ Dawn thought, grimacing at the prospect of all the television screens she'd be featured on by tomorrow, at least. _This is definitely going to be interesting. _

…

After an hour or so of walking, Paul started recognizing things. Trees, large rocks, that sort of stuff—things that he recognized from his occasional walks in the woods with Reggie. The walks had always been enjoyable. Now, Paul was glad he was able to recognize the landmarks in the immediate area of Veilstone City. So those "useless tree-hugger nature walks" (as Paul had called them) were actually _not_ so useless after all.

Paul began to walk faster, to the point where he was almost running. Torterra had a bit of a hard time keeping up, so Paul recalled it, and broke into an all-out sprint. How long had it been? Two days? Three? Four? Reggie had to be worried sick. Paul might have had a cold attitude and not seemed to care about anything, but he always made sure Reggie knew where he was going when he left. Paul never just disappeared. What could Reggie be thinking happened to Paul?

_I'm not going to think about that, actually,_ Paul decided.

As he neared Veilstone City, Paul heard voices. They got louder and louder, and it was clear something big had happened. Many, many people were gathering in the streets of Veilstone, but why?

"Did you hear? Someone told me that the girl who supposedly died a month ago just showed up in the middle of the street! And a little boy from Hoenn who was announced dead about last week—he's there, too!"

Paul's mouth went dry as he heard the person's chatter. Dawn and Max.

Well, the jig was up now. Dawn Berlitz and Max Maple were dead no longer. _Boy, are things about to get interesting,_ Paul thought.

…

**Well, Paul's right. Things ARE about to get interesting! Big time! Also, I've got a poll up on my profile for whether I should keep this fic AmourShipping or switch to PokéShipping… so please check that out! Oh, and review! YES, REVIEW! REVIEEWWWWWW! **

**And read Ty8's stories. They are awesome. More updates will come soon! Hope you enjoyed this! And were those Smarties good? :D**


	19. Chapter 19: OHMYARCEUSLOOKATTHENEWS

**Whooooo hooo! Hey there guys! I know, I know, I'm a lazy stick-in-the-mud for not updating... but hey, I think this chapter is pretty good! And I have a new fic up, too... it's called the Random Room and it's about Pokémon and... I think it's pretty great, so check that out! And would you do me a favor and read my one-shots as well...? **

**Misty: *grumbles* You're sounding like** **an advertiser**** now.**

**Be quiet and let them read! Besides, you should be grateful, Misty... you get a special part in this chapter. **

**Misty: Really?! No joke?! All, right! YOU should own Pokémon, Kit. If you did, I'd probably return to travel with Ash some more in XY... not that dopey, naive Serena... **

**Unfortunately, we all know I don't own Pokémon. You'd still have your little Togepi if I did. **

**... **

Ash wanted to hold Pikachu close to his chest, arms wrapped protectively around the little Pokémon. But he couldn't, because Pikachu was with Professor Oak. At least, that was what May had told him. He missed his buddy so badly.

It had all happened so fast, there was hardly time for him to process what was really happening. But now, riding atop Paul's Gliscor, Ash had the time to think back on what had actually occurred...

Ash and May were hurrying back through Veilstone City to where Drew and May were staying. A lot of commotion had suddenly struck up, and upon catching the words, _"those kids that were supposed to be dead"_ Ash was sure he'd been recognized.

Well, no. He hadn't.

Trying to follow the crowd and keep a low profile, Ash and May soon realized what the commotion was _really _about.

There they were, in the middle of a mob of people, looking somewhat afraid but more so hopeful. Dawn and Max. Ash had heard May let out a choked sob and stumble forward to her little brother, wrapping her arms around him and holding him tight. They were both gasping and sobbing and crying, so glad to see each other again, to know that their sibling was all right. It almost made Ash cry with happiness himself, just watching them. It also made him miss Pikachu. So Ash had just told himself that Pikachu was safe at Professor Oak's house, that everything would be fine, and he would see his buddy again.

Ash had heard dozens of questions, many of which were, of course, about himself, Max, Dawn, and Gary. He didn't answer any of them - he mostly just brushed people aside, all the while standing protectively in front of May, Max, and Dawn. All around, there were camera flashes and waving arms and shouts and such clamor; it wasn't exactly every day that children returned from the "dead".

"May, is that you?!"

Ash's head snapped up, as did May's, at the sound of the familiar voice. "Drew." Ash gaped at the green-haired coordinator.

"Drew!" May gasped and rushed toward him, one hand clutching Max's tightly. "M-Max is alive! And - and Ash is, too, and so is Dawn! Th-they... they're all alive!"

"Yeah, we noticed." A husky voice muttered dryly from behind them. Paul emerged from the crowd, and the mauve-haired Trainer expanded a Pokéball and tossed it into the air, letting out his Gliscor. "Now come on. We need to get out of here. The world knows you're alive, which I suppose can be considered good or bad, and now if you don't want to be trampled and practically torn apart by the media, we'd better split."

May nodded, and Dawn called out Togekiss. Max scrambled onto the Fairy-type, followed immediately by May and Dawn, before Togekiss took to the skies with the three Trainers on board. Drew called out his Flygon and flew up after Togekiss, followed by Ash and Paul on Gliscor.

Below, the crowd had been getting more and more restless as they realized the trainers were leaving. Veilstone City's Officer Jenny pulled up, but the six Trainers were already too high up to catch. In minutes, they were long gone.

And now, as Ash thought back on everything, he realized it wouldn't be long before news of their return was all over every news channel on every TV in the whole of Napaj. In a way, it relieved Ash - there would be no more grief and depression for his mother, for Dawn's mother, or Max and May's parents. Of course, it would certainly be shocking news - but it would be good news, indeed.

Paul let out an audible sigh. He was thinking of Reggie. Then he stopped himself - his brother would know he was okay, now. With all the pictures people had been snapping, it would be evident to Reggie that Paul was, at least, alive.

Paul turned his attention to Ash. "Why isn't that Pikachu with you?"

Ash looked down. "Pikachu's with Professor Oak. I... before I was captured, Pikachu and I were kind of... separated. May says the Prof's got him now."

Paul didn't respond. Though he had never really showed it, it was true that Paul had quite a bond with Torterra. It was obviously the same for Ash and Pikachu. And Paul could tell it wasn't easy for Ash to be without his closest friend and partner. Paul wasn't exactly good at showing emotion, but he was pretty good at perceiving emotion, and Ash was basically an open book. You didn't exactly have to be a rocket scientist to tell how Ash was feeling, to say the least.

May, meanwhile, was thinking of her parents. They knew Max was alive, now. They knew that their children had been reunited and were, once more, off on a little adventure together. May smiled and kissed Max's hair. He was so important to her - he was _precious _to her. And now she had him back, and he wasn't dead like she thought he was. That was all that mattered now, whatever danger they were plunging into. She had Max again.

And Dawn... she was in a situation much like Ash's. For just over a month, her mother had thought she was dead. And, with Dawn being an only child and her father having died years ago, her mother had no one left. It must have left her emotionally crushed, Dawn was sure.

_Well, that's all over now. The truth has gotten out - well, most of it, anyway..._ Dawn thought. Her mother was going to know she was alive, at last.

Everyone was going to know.

...

**About an hour later, in Cerulean City **

Misty stared at the TV screen.

Well, she'd been right...

There they were, pictures of Ash, Max, and Dawn... they were with May as well, plus some green-haired kid she didn't recognize, and the purple-haired kid who had gone missing three days earlier, whom Misty identified as Ash's rival in Sinnoh - Paul Rebolledo. That was his name.

Well, there they all were. Being showed in dozens of pictures on every news broadcast all over Kanto, and mostly all over the whole of the Napaj nation.

Misty stood abruptly from where she'd been sitting on the living room couch. She hurried to the pool where Gym battles were fought and grabbed her red drawstring bag, checking to see if she had everything she needed inside. Water bottles, a few days' worth of food, a small sleeping bag, some Super Potions - check, check, check, and check. Misty cast her eyes about the rack of Pokéballs.

Gyarados. Misty dropped his ball into her bag.

Kingdra. His ball went in next.

Her speedy, stalwart Staryu was next to go in.

Politoed. He was ever-reliable and an obvious choice.

Always elegant and a champion swimmer, Goldeen was next.

And then...

Misty smirked. She'd always loved her Psyduck. Often, she acted as though she hated it, but part of her always liked the silly and somewhat stupid Pokémon. Careful training had resulted in Psyduck being the strongest of all her Pokémon, and the two had created quite a strong bond.

Misty dropped Psyduck's ball into her bag, added a few cans of Pokémon food - Brock's special Water-type recipe, actually - and, pulling the drawstrings tight, swung the bag onto her back.

After jotting down a quick note and leaving it on the Gym's door, Misty set off for the woods near the Gym. Then she let out a low, long whistle, and a Togekiss in all its glory appeared. Misty smiled warmly. The Togekiss trilled happily upon seeing her and rubbed its head against her playfully. Misty laughed and petted Togekiss's head.

This was the Togekiss who, four long years ago, had hatched from a colorful spotted egg as a tiny Togepi. Misty mothered the little Pokémon and loved him dearly. When Togepi evolved into a Togetic and Misty had to say goodbye, well, it had been a sad farewell to say the least. Misty didn't cry, for Togetic's sake, but she wanted to.

And then one day, a Togekiss visited her Gym and Misty just _knew _it was her little Togepi, come back to visit. Since then, Togekiss had visited often, and Misty had only to whistle if she needed Togekiss's help. Like now, for instance.

"Hey there, Togekiss. Could you give me a ride?" Misty cooed.

...

Not ten minutes later, the three oldest Waterflower sisters returned from an exciting shopping trip to find a little note attached to the door of the Gym.

_Ash is alive. Gone to find him. Be back in a few weeks (hopefully). _

_- Misty _

...

"P-Professor! Professor Oak, come look at this!" Delia gasped.

The Professor stumbled into the room. "Wh-what is it, Delia?" Then, seeing the pictures on the TV, his face paled. "Is that...?"

Delia nodded. Her eyes were shining.

"But... wait, where... where is Gary? Why isn't he with them?"

Delia frowned. "I... I don't know, perhaps..." She trailed off, then her eyes widened as she heard what the news anchor was saying.

_"...have discovered evidence that leads us to believe that these children were not, as previously believed, killed by the Black Hands of Team Rocket, but captured instead and returned to a Team Rocket base somewhere here in Sinnoh..."_

A Team Rocket base in Sinnoh. That was where they had been held, and where Gary was likely still being held, Professor Oak presumed.

Those kids - Ash, May, Max, Dawn, and Gary, along with their friend who Professor Oak believed to be called Drew - were quite capable of handling themselves. The Professor had seen many of them accomplish the impossible before, especially Ash. Ash had a knack for overcoming the impossible - no, not just overcoming it, _destroying the meaning of the word impossible._ And if a kid had a knack like that, surviving on their own for a little while and running from an evil organization - and, if Professor Oak knew any of those kids, they'd be saving Gary as well - should be a piece of cake.

Right?

...

Brock nearly dropped Salvadore's plate.

His eyes were on the TV screen, hands shaking. Brock carefully set the plate down in front of his brother, who didn't begin to eat right away, as he usually did. Instead, Salavdore's eyes were on Brock, as were the eyes of all of his younger siblings. Brock _never _acted like this.

They turned their attention to the TV screen. The news anchors were blabbering on about some kids returning from the dead... _Wait, what?! _Salvatore nearly choked on his mashed potatoes.

There were pictures up there. Pictures of...

_Oh. _It was those kids who had been Brock's friends, the ones Brock's siblings remembered as "the ones who made Brock cry". They hadn't seen Brock cry before those kids died.

Now, they were apparently not dead after all.

"Ash..." Brock muttered. "Dawn, and Max..."

A smile slowly spread across Brock's face, something Salvadore had rarely seen as of late.

...

**Well, I think I did a pretty good job with that! Does this make up for me being a lazy stick-in-the-mud and not updating for, well, FOREVER? Yes? Okay, good! Oh, and I am also treating y'all to some virtual cookies! THEY'RE SHAPED LIKE BUTTERFREE! **

**:3 Enjoy. Oh, and did you catch that bit about when Professor Oak was thinking about Ash and friends? I mean, it's true. Ash DOES have a habit of grinding the term "impossible" to a pulp. And it's also true that surviving out there on his own and everything - that'll be a piece of cake for Ash! **

**Right? **

**NEXT CHAPTER'S AWESOME PERKS: **

**An update on Iris and Cilan and Cilan's brothers and all that **

**A crazy chance meeting between Emily, Trip, and a certain other character we all know and love **

**The results of my poll and the answer to this question: POKESHIPPING OR AMOURSHIPPING?! **

**Stay tuned! **

**Ash: Stop talking like a narrator... **

**I REFUSE! :D **


	20. Chapter 20: The Power to Kill

**Well, hello and welcome to the next chapter of The Ash Conspiracy: Down in Flames! This is a SPECIAL chapter, by the way, and it's EXTRA LONG to boot! What do I mean by "special"? Well, for starters, the TRUE plot begins to unfold. Basically, the most exciting part of the whole story begins! Yeah, that's right, I said it! And you've all been wanting Ash and Pikachu to be reunited, correct? Well, your wish will SOON be granted, so sit back, relax, munch on these yummy virtual Reese's cups I'm handing out *hands out Reese's cups to EVERYONE OH MY ARCEUS HOORAY* and enjoy this wonderful chapter! **

_**Aaaaaand just so you know, we just hit 10,000 views. That is... awesome. Thank you guys! You are FABULOUS! **_

**Misty: Ahem. Kit. You forgot something. **

…**oh. Right. **

**Misty: The poll results, Kit?! Hello?! EVERYONE'S BEEN WAITING FOR THAT! Including ME! And ASH! **

**Ash: Huh? Poll? About what? **

**Whether this fic should have PokéShipping or AmourShipping. **

**Ash: …PokéShipping? AmourShipping? What's that? **

**Misty: *pulls out mallet* Ash. Don't. Go. There. **

**Serena: Hiya folks! **

**Misty: *eyes turn to flames* THERE YOU ARE! MY BIGGEST RIVAL! **

**Serena: *nervously* Um… okay…? **

**OKAY GUYS, ENOUGH ALREADY! So, I'm totally NOT stalling here, but… **

**Misty: Gee, Kit, real subtle. **

…**oh, be quiet. ANYWAY, someone tipped me off in a review that I accidentally typed "Ash, Pikachu, and May" last chapter in a certain sentence when Ash and Pikachu aren't supposed to be together. Eh, mistypes happen! Well, I fixed it, anyway. **

**And now, of course… *gulp* **

**Misty: *glares* Spill the beans, Kit. **

**Okay, okay! OH, and remember that differences in shipping does NOT change the quality of the story! So if you don't like the result, stay with us anyway, please! **

**Misty: *glares harder* Kit…! **

**FINE! THE OFFICIAL SHIP FOR THIS FIC IS… *gasp* …POKESHIPPING! **

**Dun, dun, DUN! **

**(And, I think I ought to warn you, it will get bloody later on in the chapter.) **

…

There it was. Riding atop Togekiss's back, Misty could clearly see Professor Oak's Pokémon lab just below her. And, down the road from there, the redhead could also make out the beginnings of a house being rebuilt—_Mrs. Ketchum's house_, Misty realized.

"Togekiss, could you land us right there—in front of the Professor's lab?" Misty called to her Pokémon. Her voice had to be rather loud for Togekiss to hear her, however; the abnormally harsh, rough winds made it hard to hear much. The thought suddenly struck Misty that it had been unusually cold and windy in the typically mild-weathered Kanto region the past week or so.

Togekiss trilled happily in response to Misty's request and began to spiral into a descent. Upon landing, Misty stepped lightly off of Togekiss's back and stroked the Flying-type's head gratefully. "Thank you so much, Togekiss. I'm going to get Ash's Pokémon from Professor Oak and then we'll set off again, so take a little rest till then, okay?"

Togekiss nodded and promptly settled down on the soft grass that grew around the lab. Togekiss was comfortable here because he remembered this place from back when he was a little Togepi, when Ash, Misty, Brock, and all their Pokémon stayed in Pallet Town for awhile before and after the Kanto and Orange Leagues, and other times when the group had visited. Misty smiled as she watched Togekiss drift into sleep and sighed contentedly. Nothing pleased her like seeing a happy Pokémon—

"Misty?!"

Misty's thoughts were shattered as she heard Mrs. Ketchum calling her name. She turned and saw Delia rushing toward her from the lab doors, soon followed by Professor Oak.

"Misty! Oh, my! Did you—did you see the news? It was—he's alive! They—they all are, and it's so amazing, I—" Delia stopped to catch her breath. Her face was flushed, her eyes shining; she was clearly very excited. Well, who wouldn't be?

"Told you so," Misty grinned.

Professor Oak spoke up next. "When you called and told us of your suspicion, well, it's not that I didn't believe you, but it was hard not to doubt it. Then, seeing it on TV this morning…" he shook his head. "I couldn't really believe it. I thought maybe my eyes and ears were playing tricks on me, but… well, it's real. I just…" The Prof shook his head again, obviously still somewhat in shock.

But Misty had a job to do. They'd said their greetings, and it was time to get down to business.

"Professor Oak, I'm getting Ash's Pokémon for him. I'm going to go find him and the others, and I guess we all know he hasn't got any Pokémon with him at all—not even Pikachu." The Gym leader gave Professor Oak a pointed glare. "Which brings me to an important question: why the Distortion World did you give Pikachu away to some newbie?!"

Professor Oak seemed to struggle for words. "I… well, you see, Pikachu was just… just horribly depressed. I couldn't get him to open up. I knew there were two possible ways for Pikachu to open up: either I gave him to a new trainer, giving him a chance to forget the past and have a fresh start, or Ash miraculously came back from the dead. At the time, I didn't really think the latter would happen, so I thought the best course of action would be to try to give Pikachu a new start."

Misty cocked an eyebrow. "Funny how it did happen, though. Ash is, miraculously, back from the dead. But then, he's Ash. It's almost normal for this sort of stuff to happen by now."

Delia frowned. "Wait, hold on, Misty. Almost normal? What does that mean?"

Misty bit her lip. "This… isn't the first time Ash has 'died', you know."

"Wait… what, what do you mean?" Delia exclaimed. She and the Professor were both staring at Misty like she was insane.

Misty sighed. "I guess no one ever told you. Thing is, Ash and I kinda kept in touch even after he and I stopped traveling together. He told me about all his crazy adventures he had throughout all of his journeys, and of course, I was there for some of them as well. I suppose I probably ought to tell you, though…

"See, there was this one time when Ash was trying to catch a Ghost-type Pokémon, so he went into that old tower in Lavender Town while Brock and I waited outside. After about 30 minutes had passed by, we started to worry, and after over an hour had gone by, we decided to go inside. I thought I heard Ash's voice out there—it scared me. I thought—I thought something had happened to Ash. We hurried into the tower and soon found him and Pikachu underneath a chandelier that had fallen from the ceiling. We pulled them out, and the scariest thing was, they weren't breathing, and their hearts weren't beating either. Brock and I shook them, called their names, pleaded for them to wake up. I just…" Misty's voice cracked for a moment. "I was getting ready to cry. And I think Brock shed a few tears, too. Then, suddenly, Ash just opened his eyes. He gasped and sat straight up like nothing had even happened.

"Then there was the time when Mewtwo, an enhanced Mew clone created by Team Rocket, tried to take over the world. He and the original Mew had this huge battle, and they cloned other Pokémon as well and forced them to do what was basically the equivalent of Pokémon street fighting. It was horrible to watch. Ash's Pikachu even refused to fight—he just let his clone hit him over and over and over. Ash couldn't bear it. Just as Mew and Mewtwo were preparing to launch final blows at one another, he jumped in between. There was a powerful explosion, and then Ash was on the ground, not moving. Just _lying _there. My heart skipped a beat when I saw him like that, it scared me so bad, and then his body turned to stone. Pikachu tried using Thunderbolt on Ash to wake him up, as if he was only sleeping, but he couldn't bring his Trainer back. Pikachu began to sob, and then all of the other Pokémon started to cry, too. Their tears brought Ash back to life. "

Misty frowned before adding another detail. "Actually, Mewtwo kind of wiped all of our memories about that, but then he later came to each of us in dreams and restored those memories."

Misty remembered the time Ash had called her Gym from a Pokémon Center somewhere in Hoenn—she couldn't remember the name of the city, but she could certainly remember the story. "Then, there's the time when Ash was swallowed up by giant blob things while trying to save the world by healing the Tree of Beginning in Hoenn. Ash told me how he just felt everything being sucked out of him—his energy, his feelings, his memories, and his very life. He said he had never felt so scared and so helpless. Pikachu grabbed his hand and tried to pull him out, to save him, but he just couldn't. Ash told me that he had just felt nothing after that, except for a wave of cold washing over him. Then he was lifted back into the real world, and he felt warm again, and all his senses came back again. It was such a crazy story, it was hard to believe—but I had seen Ash 'die' before, and I knew he'd never lie, so I didn't doubt his words."

Misty took a deep breath before continuing. It was impossible to discern the expressions on Delia's and Professor Oak's faces—some mix of shock, disbelief, worry, and a bunch of other emotions. "And then there's the time when Ash was in Unova. He was trying to save the Legendary Pokémon Victini, and he was in a flying castle—sounds crazy, I know—and they were getting so high, it was freezing cold and hard to breathe. They were surrounded by these pillars that were trapping him and Pikachu and Victini, and they were kind of zapping their energy, like Litwick do. And then Ash just found himself unable to move. He said he fell into this cold trance, and he lost all feeling. Then Victini used some sort of special power, channeling all its rage into the move, and Ash said the best way he could describe it was that Victini pulled him back into life."

Delia took a shaky breath. "M-Misty... I don't doubt that Ash was telling the truth. I contribute that you are. This is just so hard to believe, though, I..." Her voice cracked slightly. "I'm just glad that Ash is okay now."

Professor Oak nodded. He was still somewhat in shock about Gary and Ash and their friends being alive. After Misty's call, they had been sort of expecting it, so it wasn't as shocking as one might expect it to be for the old Professor. But still, the shock affected Oak.

Delia, however, seemed to be much more accepting of this idea that not only was Ash alive, but he had died and come back to life before - four times, to be exact, not even counting the times he had _nearly_ died.

Misty took a deep breath. "Professor Oak, let me get to the point. I'm here to get Ash's Pokémon, and I guess I'll get Gary's as well."

The Prof nodded and led Misty into the lab, with Delia close behind.

"Here." Professor Oak pressed a few buttons on a computer, and a list popped up, showing the names, images, and information about health, experience, and info about the capture for each of Ash's Pokémon. Misty scrolled through and began choosing Pokémon to take.

Sceptile. A fully evolved Hoenn starter with a lot of experience - definitely a good choice.

Bulbasaur. One of Ash's most reliable companions, Bulbasaur could hold its ground in battle.

Charizard. Misty noted that the Fire-type was back for on training in the Charasific Valley and smiled. If she knew Charizard like she thought she did, he would have become the best in the whole Valley so there was no one left for him to battle. She'd heard about Charizard traveling with Ash for awhile in Unova and smiled. Ash and Charizard had such a strong bond, it really was amazing.

Totodile. Misty knew that the little Water-type's quick, happy steps and the cheerful and precise way Totodile executed its moves could prove invaluable to Ash.

Noctowl. Misty grinned. The Flying-type's amazing intellect would be quite an advantage for Ash in a battle, and Noctowl's excellent vision would be valuable as well.

As Misty selected the Pokémon, Professor Oak gave her the Pokéballs. He then checked out all of the Pokémon she had selected, and had her choose Gary's Pokémon next. After some consideration, Misty chose:

Blastoise.

Umbreon.

Electivire.

Nidoking.

Scizor.

And Magmortar.

Misty smiled. "Done."

When she set off on her Togekiss, all of the balls in her red drawstring bag, Misty's thoughts drifted to Pikachu.

Ash needed Pikachu, and Pikachu needed Ash. Misty was going to make sure that the two got together again. They had already been apart for too long.

...

Proton pressed the button.

It was a small red button, seemingly insignificant, on a large, boxy, metal machine. A set of chains were attached to the machine, and bound in those chains was the great Articuno.

As Proton pressed the button, the chains began to glow brightly, and Articuno soon followed. The Legendary bird let out a bloodcurdling scream, and Proton smiled. Finally, Articuno gave up. It sank to the floor, weakened for a moment. That was what Team Rocket needed. In Articuno's moment of weakness, they could take control of its mind.

Then, suddenly, its eyes snapped open. Their glowing red color was unnatural. It shrieked again, in rage this time, and the chains shattered. That didn't matter. The machine had done its job; Articuno was under Team Rocket's control now.

Giovanni, who had watched the whole thing, chuckled to himself. "Now," he commanded. "Show me how it works on the boy."

His eyes drifted to the face of Gary Oak, also bound in chains and attached to a similar machine. Gary's eyes were wide with fear. He was pale and thin from malnutrition. His lower lip trembled. Giovanni's smile widened. The boy was terrified. Well, he had every reason to be.

"Yes sir, Giovanni," Proton answered, almost mechanically. The executive pressed the button on Gary's machine, and Giovanni listened to the boy's screams.

The machine was supposed to yank every last bit of energy out of its victim if used on a human, then collect that energy. If used on a Pokémon, it was to weaken that Pokémon before taking control of its mind. The machine did this with the special use of EM waves.

Now, as Gary's very life energy was torn out of him with a vicious electric current, pain seared his skin and his soul. His screams echoed through the room - haunting screams of a child in horrible pain, of a child slowly dying.

It lasted for about thirty seconds. Then the chains shattered, the screams abruptly ceased, and Gary's limp form slumped to the ground.

Proton opened a tiny hatch in the back of the machine and withdrew a small jar, handing it off to Giovanni. Here, the energy was collected. Giovanni's maniacal smile grew even more. Perfect.

Proton stalked over to Gary and reached down, feeling for his pulse. It was faint, but it was there. So the boy had survived the tests, so far. Now, however, he was in such a weakened state that even if they attacked him fairly, with no sneaky tactics, he wouldn't be able to fight back.

It struck Giovanni that this was the perfect opportunity for a public announcement.

...

A shadow fell over Emily, and she looked up.

Was that... a Togekiss...?

"That's not a Togekiss, it it?" Trip mumbled, voicing Emily's own thoughts.

The two were on a small hike through the woods near Pewter City, looking for Pokémon. Emily needed to capture a new Pokémon to battle the Pewter Gym Leader.

"Hey!" A redhead peeked out from over the Togekiss's head down at Emily and Trip. "Mind if I come in for a landing?"

Emily and Trip just stared, which the girl apparently took as a yes. The Fairy-type landed gracefully, and the girl stepped off with an equal amount of finesse. Emily gasped when she realized it was Misty, the Cerulean Gym Leader!

"M-Misty?" Emily gasped.

"Wait, wait. Why is some Gym Leader following you around?" Trip sounded baffled.

"Uh..." Emily was at a loss for words.

Misty sighed. "You didn't see the news today, did you?"

Trip and Emily said "no" simultaneously.

"Then I suppose you don't know about a few young trainers who apparently came back from the dead earlier, now do you?" Misty continued.

It clicked instantly in Trip's head. His eyes widened, and his gaze drifted to Pikachu, who was standing beside Emily, its little head cocked slightly to the side.

Emily was still confused, but she followed Trip's eyes and that was when it hit her.

"That kid..." Emily muttered. "Th-that kid... Ash..."

Misty nodded.

Pikachu padded over to Msity and gave her a knowing smile. Misty saw that look and smirked. This was Pikachu's way of saying "I told you so."

"Do I... do I have to give up my Pikachu?" Emily whispered, sounding scared.

Misty sighed. "Emily, think about this. Your Pikachu has been best friends with Ash for four years now. They were so close, they did everything together. Ash has a bond with Pikachu that's amazingly strong. Then, suddenly, they were ripped away from each other, neither knowing if the other was even alive. I'll let you decide, Emily. Do you really still want to keep your Pikachu?"

Emily frowned. "Pikachu was my first Pokémon, though..."

"But Pikachu was someone else's first Pokémon. You could always think of Skitty as your real first Pokémon," Misty suggested. The little pink Pokémon smiled and wagged its cute tail before rubbing affectionately against Emily's leg.

Emily hesitated, then looked at Pikachu. She realized she hadn't really created much of a bond with Pikachu, anyway. Slowly, the young 10-year-old nodded toward Misty.

"Okay," Misty said with a smile. "Trip, you got any Flying-types?"

"I - yes, an Unpheasant."

"Can it carry two?"

"I - I think so."

"Great. Emily, Trip, you ride Unpheasant. I'll hop aboard Togekiss. We're heading east, 'kay?"

"Wait, Misty..." Trip was cut off as her Togekiss took off with Pikachu and Misty on it.

"Okay, then," Emily sighed. "Let's get a move on."

She looked down at the Pokéball that held her newly-caught Spearow. She couldn't ride it yet, but she could definitely create a bond with it. And she planned on doing so.

...

Ash groaned. He was tired. They all were tired. In fact, they were exhausted.

After flying for over two hours, the group's Flying-types were exhausted, so they decided to rest. Under the safe cover of trees, the little ragtag group had stopped, and proceeded to settle down and try to sleep.

But that was interrupted when a gasp was heard from Max, who was curled up next to his sister.

Max was staring at the screen of his PokéNav, eyes wide. Within seconds, all of them - Ash, Paul, Dawn, May, Drew, and Max - had gathered around the device.

"It's Giovanni," Max whispered. "He's hacked into Napaj's broadcasting system. Team Rocket has something to say."

...

**Okay, to prevent confusion, I'll explain what Napaj is. **

**It's not a region. It is a nation. It is the country that all of the six regions are in. Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos - they're all in the Napaj nation. This is not canon, it's just something I Am Lu (awesome fanfic author) came up with, and I used the idea. Thank you for your attention, now back to the story! **

...

Delia's voice shook as she yelled the Professor's name.

"P-Professor! Professor Oak!" She cried. "You - you have to see this!"

The Professor rushed into the living room, where Delia was watching the TV. On the screen was Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket.

"What..." Oak trailed off as another individual in a Rocket uniform walked on screen. He was holding a young boy, who looked about fourteen, by the collar. As Delia and the Prof watched, the Rocket dumped the boy onto the ground, where he collapsed. Then the Rocket walked away.

The boy struggled to his knees and lifted his face. The Professor drew in a sharp breath. Delia gasped.

It was Gary.

Gary Oak.

Giovanni smiled creepily. "People of the Napaj nation, I have an announcement to make. That announcement is that Team Rocket has power. We are not just some silly little organization that steals Pokémon. We are alive. We are here. And we have power."

Giovanni smirked at Gary and tossed a Pokéball into the air. "Persian!"

As the signature Pokémon of Team Rocket's leader materialized, Giovanni continued: "Now, you will see an example of Team Rocket's true power." He pointed a finger at Gary, who tried to stumble away from Persian, but didn't have the energy. Gary's face was gaunt, his eyes had dark circles. Anyone could see he was drained - and terrified. He saw what was about to happen to him.

Professor Oak's breathing quickened. He saw, too.

"No," he whispered hoarsely. "No..."

"You see, citizens of Napaj, Team Rocket holds the power you fear the most. For we have the power" Giovanni spat the next two words. "to _kill._"

Delia put her face in her hands.

Professor Oak couldn't watch, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from the screen. "Gary..." He muttered. "No... No, no, no..."

"Persian," Giovanni commanded calmly. "Use Slash."

Persian's claws glowed white. It charged toward Gary, claws extended, aiming right for his gut. Gary's body was too exhausted to dodge it, and Professor Oak could only watch in absolute horror as his grandson's tortured screams echoed through the entire Napaj nation and his limp, torn body fell to the ground, leaving bloodstains on Persian's claws and a pool of red liquid on the floor where he fell.

...

**Please don't hate me. I warned you it would get bloody. And just know that there will be more to the story. This isn't the end of the fic. So maybe, just maybe, it's not the end for Gary either. **

**Misty: *starts to cry* Kit, you are just plain evil! **


	21. Chapter 21: A Hug from Ash to Gary

**Hi guys… **

**So, I didn't update for a long time 'cause of stuff. Then I updated yesterday and was a terrible, evil author, as you all know. So I decided to be nice and give ya another chapter today! This should make you all feel better about Gary. **

**Hopefully. **

**Misty: *still crying from last chapter* KIT YOU ARE EVIL! EVIL EVIL EVIL! **

**Be quiet, Misty. This chapter is good! You'll like it! Maybe. **

**Gary: *reads last chapter* Kit, you have GOT to be kidding me. **

**Eheheh… **

**Brock: *ignoring everyone while reading a book* **

**What the! *reads book title* How to Make a Girl Like You…?! ARE YOU SERIOUS, BROCK?! **

**Brock: Let's see… give her chocolate…? Kit, this is random, but do you want my half-melted Hershey bar? **

…**! **

**Misty: *hits Brock with mallet* She is SO out of your league, Brock! **

***sneaks away quietly while they are fighting* o-kaaaay, on with the chapter? **

…

Max's hands shook. This could not be happening. He did not just see that. No, no, no…

"G-Gary…" Ash whispered. Gary and Ash had been close friends from the time they were very young, and Max could hear the devastation in Ash's voice.

Paul had never really known Gary (though Ash had certainly mentioned him before), but it still shook him to see someone only two years younger than himself so viciously attacked in front of the entire Napaj nation. For a few moments, the camera focused on Giovanni's face, then on the unmoving body of Gary Oak. Suddenly, something clicked in Paul's mind. He had an idea.

Max tore his eyes away. He couldn't look. This was too much, just too much…

Paul reached out and tapped a few buttons on the PokéNav.

_'Idenitfying location shown.' _

Max looked up, realizing what Paul was doing.

_'Location found.' _

The PokéNav switched to the map feature, and a little red marker appeared at a spot not two miles from where they were now.

"That's it." Paul stated. "That's where Team Rocket is. That's where _Gary_ is."

Ash promptly stood. "We need to go, _now._"

May nodded, as did Max. Drew had seen Gary before, but he didn't really know him; nevertheless, Drew understood exactly what was going on. Team Rocket had used Gary somehow. Apparently, they didn't need him anymore, and decided to use him to make a statement to the people of Napaj. Drew grimaced. Team Rocket had used a kid – just an ordinary Trainer – and tried to kill him just to show their power? It was just sick.

Quickly, Drew called out his Flygon. Ash reached for a Pokéball but stopped when he realized he had none. Dawn called out Togekiss, and Paul let out his Honchkrow – because Gliscor was already exhausted – and the kids quickly boarded the Flying-types. Drew rode with Ash on Flygon, Paul alone on Honchkrow, and Dawn rode Togekiss with May sitting behind her, Max on her lap.

"It's that way," Max directed, pointing. Dawn, Drew, and Paul each had their Pokémon head that way.

Ash was trying not to cry. He didn't cry often, but with what had just happened, he couldn't hold back the tears. Drew looked back at the raven-haired Trainer for a moment, but quickly turned back to face forward. Ash's teeth were gritted and his fists clenched, and tears trickled down his face, one by one. Gary…

Suddenly, Dawn gasped. She pointed up ahead. There was a small clearing. There was no sign of Team Rocket – they were long gone by now. But in the middle of the grassy area was the unmoving body of Gary Oak.

Honchkrow, Togekiss, and Flygon zipped toward the ground and landed quickly. The six Trainers stumbled off of the Pokémon and rushed over to the horrible scene in front of them. Ash's face was pale as he dropped to his knees beside Gary and hastily felt for a pulse. It was there, thank Arceus.

Gary opened his mouth as if to say something, but couldn't seem to make out the words. His breathing sounded labored, and Gary's body shuddered as he coughed up blood.

Gary's shirt was soaked with the blood. Ash could hardly bear to look at Gary's abdomen – it was horrible. Practically shredded.

"Gary…" Ash whispered. "I-it'll be okay… you'll be okay, I promise…"

Gary shook his head. "I-I…" he choked out. "Ash…"

Ash's breath shook as he listened.

"B-best of… of f-friends…" Gary's voice was fading. "Till… till the… e-end…"

Fresh tears welled up in Ash's eyes. "Yeah. Best… best of friends. Best of friends till the end." His voice cracked on the last word, and he reached out to clutch Gary's hand tightly. "St-stay with me, Gary. Please!"

May was holding Max close. Drew gave May's hand a squeeze, as if to comfort her – or try to. Dawn was shaking as she watched. And, as Paul watched Gary slowly, painfully dying while one of his best friends begged for him to hold on, the mauve-haired Trainer felt something inside him crack.

Gary's breathing was getting shallower. "B-best… best of… friends…" Gary's eyes seemed to focus on something in the distance. "Best… b-best… of… friends…"

Ash shook his head. "G-Gary, please… please, Gary!" His voice rose slightly. "Y-you'll be fine, Gary! You'll be okay!" There were tears in his voice and tears falling down his face. He was sobbing now. "Please, Gary, please! Don't do this!"

Gary's breathing slowed to a stop. His torn body twitched once, then fell still.

That was it.

"No! NO!" Ash yelled. "Gary! No! Gary, come back, please! _Gary!"_

Max was crying into May's hoodie. She caressed him and petted his hair gently, while tears of her own flowed down her face. Paul looked away. Dawn's face was in her hands. Drew gritted his teeth and clenched his hands, trying not to let the tears come. Nevertheless, his eyes began to mist.

Gary Oak was gone.

…

Professor Oak's hands trembled. This couldn't happen… no, no, no… not his grandson. Not Gary. Just when the Professor thought he would see Gary again, this happened.

Professor Oak gritted his teeth. He had lost the only family he had, just like that. And it was all because of…

…Team Rocket.

Professor Oak clenched his trembling hands into fists.

Team Rocket.

He _hated _them.

They had taken everything from him. Gary was everything to him, just like Ash was everything to Delia. Now Gary was gone. Gary was dead. There was nothing left.

Delia sat beside him, tears in her beautiful eyes. She rested a cool hand on his fist, and he relaxed slightly. She had a way of knowing just what to do.

But there was nothing she could really do now.

He stood abruptly and walked out of the living room and down the hall. Then he flung open the door to Gary's room.

Pokémon plush dolls. Gym badges. A Pokéball alarm clock that was just like Ash's. The blankets on his bed decorated with images of racecars and Pokéballs. The Professor's breathing quickened. All of Gary's things. It was too much, too painful to be in here right now.

"G-Gary…" Professor Oak whispered hoarsely. "I can't lose you, Gary… why, Arceus? Why Gary?! Why my only grandson?! Tell me why!" His voice rose with each word and finally cracked. He just couldn't take this any longer.

…

"Ash?!"

Brock stared at the scene before him in utter horror.

After seeing the news report on TV, Brock had flown on a plane to Sinnoh and proceeded to search for Ash and his little group. He hadn't seen any sort of TV, news reports, or anything of the like yet that day, though, so the situation was new to him. And this was what he saw:

Gary Oak, his clothes soaked with blood, his body torn and useless, lying unmoving on the grass. Brock couldn't see much detail, but he could tell something nasty had happened.

Ash, crying and holding Gary's hand, teeth gritted in fury. Brock knew that whoever had done this wasn't going to be forgiven easily by Ash. Normally, Ash forgave anyone just like _that_, but if you hurt one of his friends, that was a different story.

Dawn, May, Max, Drew, and Paul, all reacting differently to the scene in front of them – most with tears.

"Brock…" Ash looked up at his friend, eyes red from crying. He seemed surprised, but didn't appear to have the energy to give Brock a better greeting. Brock rushed over to him and his eyes widened in horror when he saw Gary.

"Is he…" Brock couldn't bear to finish the question.

Ash nodded, and fresh tears spilled down his face. "Y-yes. Gary… Gary is…" his voice cracked. "Gary is dead."

Brock dropped to his knees beside the boy's unmoving body. His face showed grief and some shock, as well. Gary's eyes had a blank, glassy expression in them as he stared into the distance. Brock reached out and gently closed them.

He looked somewhat at peace. save for his shredded, destroyed torso, Gary could almost have been sleeping. Part of Brock hoped he was, that he would get up and say, "Psych! Gotcha, Ashy-boy!" or something else like that, maybe make an arrogant comment. Brock would do anything to hear one of those arrogant comments right then. Gary had only been fourteen. He had his whole life ahead of him. And now all that was gone.

Brock looked away and felt tears in his own eyes.

Why couldn't it just be simple again? Why did this have to happen? Why did Gary have to die like this, in such a horrible, painful, bloody way?

These were questions that Brock knew would probably never be answered.

…

Gary watched the Persian's claws coming at him. In an instant he knew what would happen. He was going to be torn apart by that Pokémon's attacks. He was going to die.

As the unbearable pain raced through his body, Gary let out a tortured scream. He felt himself go limp, and he felt his torn, useless body be flung to the ground. Gary only groaned when, for nothing more than pleasure, Persian slashed its claws across his body again, shredding his skin; he had no energy left to scream.

He heard Giovanni's laugh, and the applause of the many Rockets watching. To them, this was just a good show. They whistled and cheered. Some even laughed. Gary heard it all in somewhat of a daze.

As he lay there dying, Gary couldn't do a thing. He could only lie there in a painful daze, waiting to die. He knew it would come. He knew he could in no way survive this. He only hoped that his grandfather could cope.

Eventually, the Rockets left. Gary couldn't tell how long it was. Minutes? Hours? Then he heard voices, and there was Ash, leaning over him.

_Best of friends, till the end. _

They were the best of friends till the end. And even though Gary knew the end was already close for him, he was grateful that he'd had that friendship with Ash – at least, while it lasted.

Slowly, the world began to fade. The pain faded, too, giving him relief. He felt his breathing slow to a stop, and a dazzling, bright light engulfed him.

Then he saw it.

Arceus.

The Alpha Pokémon.

_It is not yet your time. You are Chosen by the Legendaries. You have a long, hard journey ahead of you._

Gary could hardly make sense of what Arceus was saying. Chosen… Legendaries… journey… this didn't make sense!

Arceus continued:

**_There will be sixteen _**

**_Chosen by the Legends. _**

**_Who shall discover the power _**

**_That they hold within them. _**

**_The Chosen ones will save this world _**

**_And discover their true path. _**

**_They will find the secret to the Legendaries, _**

**_And be bonded forever and aft. _**

As Arceus announced the strange-sounding prophecy, Gary felt something stir within him. This prophecy… it was _meant _for him.

And what Gary felt next was even more amazing and strange.

He felt warmth spread within him, and he began to tingle. He felt a burst of overwhelming joy, and suddenly, his eyes snapped open.

He was lying on the grass in the clearing where Giovanni killed him.

Slowly, Gary sat up. Ash, Dawn, May, Max, Brock, Drew, and Paul were just staring at him.

"G-Gary?" Ash stammered.

Gary nodded. "Yeah… it's me."

"Did you just…" Brock trailed off, not sure how to voice the question.

"…come back from the dead? Yeah, I think so." Gary deadpanned.

Ash slowly began to smile. His face lit up with the joy of realizing that Gary was, in fact, alive.

And Ash gave Gary a hug.

…

**Okay, NOW you'll all be happy. Right? **

**Misty: *has stopped crying* THANK ARCEUS! **


	22. Chapter 22: Reuniting! FINALLY!

**Drama. You guys love it just like I do, right? Well, it's true that I could have done more with the Gary dying part - added much more drama and grief. But for the story to work out the way I have planned, I needed to bring him back. But, of course, my plan also gave me a way to keep it dramatic even though Gary's back, which will be revealed this chapter! **

**Also, I told you guys that I would have a segment on Iris and Cilan in Chapter 20, and I kind of lied. Hehehe. Well, THIS chapter I WILL have one! I promise ya that! **

**Misty: Kit, this story is getting out of hand. **

**Chillax, Misty. I got it under control. **

**Misty: Did you just say chillax...? **

**Yup. Now, y'all can just chillax and enjoy this chapter and some M'n'M cookies and some PokéShipping and WishfulShipping! Hooray! **

**... **

"You were... dead... for about five or ten minutes. Then you suddenly started to glow, which lasted a few seconds, and then it stopped and you... woke up, I guess."

Gary nodded as he listened to Ash speak. So, he died. He got a prophecy from Arceus. And then he glowed and came back to life. Interesting, to say the least.

"Oh..." Gary suddenly spoke up. "I also... kind of... got a prophecy. From Arceus."

Ash blinked. "Wait, _what?!"_

"A prophecy?" Brock asked, bewildered. Everyone was listening intently now.

Gary nodded before reciting the words he had heard Arceus say to him when he had temporarily died:

"There will be sixteen

Chosen by the Legends.

Who shall discover the power

That they hold within them.

The Chosen ones will save this world

And discover their true path.

They will find the secret to the Legendaries,

And be bonded forever and aft."

When Gary finished, all of the seven other Trainers just looked at him for a moment. Then they looked at each other. They were all thinking one thing.

"It's us," Max said simply, stating everyone's thoughts. "The eight of us - we're eight of the sixteen Chosen ones."

Gary smirked. "I get the feeling you're right."

"But why us?" Drew suddenly spoke up. "I mean, there's got to be something connecting connecting us. Something special. But what is it?"

For a moment, Brock's eyes drifted to Ash. His eyes widened, and he turned back to Gary.

"Gary," Brock said seriously. "Tell me what they did to you in that Rocket base. And tell me what they said."

Gary frowned. Then he nodded, and closed his eyes, remembering. He minced visibly as hundreds of horrible memories of pain, hunger, exhaustion, and terror resurfaced in his mind. Then he spoke.

"They... They attached me to this machine. I was bound in chains that were connected to it. There was a button, and they pressed it, and it was horrible... it was so terrifying and so painful, and they were draining all of my life energy. I blacked out eventually, but when I woke up back in a cell, I heard them talking about auras or something. They were saying that I had a special aura, and they were extracting it from me or something, and it was because of... because of..." Gary trailed off. Something had just clicked in his mind, and it was clear Brock had already come to this conclusion.

"...Ash." Gary finished.

"Ash?" Drew repeated. "What... what do you mean?"

"Ash has a special aura. All of us are connected to him in some way, and I guess his special aura rubbed off on us or something. That special aura can be useful to Team Rocket, so... so they are trying to take it. To extract out life energy. Then they'll kill us so we don't interfere anymore with their plans." Gary said, stony-faced. "Like they did to me."

Ash shuddered at the memory of Gary being so viciously murdered by Team Rocket. How they could do such a thing was... just sick. Absolutely sick.

Max's eyes were wide with fear, and May hugged him tightly. "It'll be okay, Max," she said quietly. "I promise I'll protect you."

Max nodded, though he still looked scared.

Dawn looked almost as afraid as Max did. Her hands trembled. She was scared mainly because she had experienced first-hand what Team Rocket was capable of. She'd been shot and nearly died herself. But she didn't have any older sister to comfort her.

Then Paul did something surprising.

He reached out and took Dawn's hand.

She turned to look at him, somewhat shocked, then blushed a little. "Paul..."

"It'll be fine, Dawn." Paul said, his voice almost toneless. "It'll all be fine."

And, looking into his eyes, Dawn believed him.

...

Iris stared in absolute horror at the TV screen.

She hadn't seen any TV yet today, and neither had Cilan or his brothers. But now, news reports were all about how Team Rocket had apparently hacked Napaj's broadcasting system earlier that morning and publicly murdered a young trainer by the name of Gary Oak.

Videos played showing what had been broadcasted. As the Persian's claws ripped across Gary's skin and the boy's torn, bloody, lifeless body was flung to the ground, Iris found her breath growing shaky. That name. That name...

It clicked in her head, and Iris's eyes widened.

That was one of Ash's best friends and rivals from his hometown.

Gary Oak, the grandson of Professor Samuel Oak.

The boy whose murder had been publicly broadcasted throughout the Napaj nation was one of Ash's best friends.

Iris had seen the pictures of Ash, Dawn, Max, May, Paul, and Drew, the six trainers who disappeared mysteriously after three of them had been reported dead and another reported missing. Iris and Cilan had both been overjoyed. But here was another of Ash's friends, killed for real this time. Iris stood for on where she had been sitting in the hospital waiting room and raced down the hall to Cilan's room, flinging open the door.

Cilan was in bed. He was making a steady recovery, but still spent most of his time in bed reading or talking to Iris or his brothers. As Iris rushed in, Cilan put down the book he was reading and looked up at the girl in alarm.

"Iris, what's the matter?" Cilan asked, eyes wide.

"This," she said, her voice cracking. She grabbed the remote to the TV on the wall opposite Cilan's bed and turned it on to the news channel.

After watching for a moment, Cilan's face blanched. "No."

Iris nodded. "Yes."

"This... this is getting out of hand," Cilan muttered, shaking his head. "And I have a feeling things are only going to get worse."

...

"There they are!" Misty shouted. She could see them blinked a small clearing below her. Emily and Trip were just behind her, riding on Unpheasant.

Pikachu's eyes lit up when he saw Ash.

"Okay, let's land, Togekiss!" Misty said.

Togekiss trilled happily and began to descend. Unpheasant, at its Trainer's command, did the same.

"Ash!" Misty called.

Ash turned to see Misty rushing towards him. Confusion patterned across his face, followed by excitement. Then he saw Pikachu, and his breath caught. He stated in shock at his best friend, who was bounding toward him, shouting, "PIKAPI!"

Pikachu leaped into Ash's arms, and Ash wrapped his arms around the little Pokémon, holding him tight like he would never let go. Pikachu's soft yellow fur felt warm against Ash's skin as they hugged. Tears trickled down Ash's face, and Pikachu was crying as well.

"Oh, buddy..." Ash whispered. "I thought I'd never see you again..."

"Pikapi," Pikachu murmured. "Pika pikachu..."

Pikachu rubbed its cheek against Ash's affectionately, and Ash laughed. Then Pikachu climbed onto his traditional spot on Ash's shoulder.

Misty came next.

She crashed into him with a hug, catching him off guard. Ash stumbled back, then returned the passionate embrace. He ran his hands through Misty's pretty red hair and smiled. She was sobbing into his shirt.

When Misty pulled away, Ash did something he never thought he'd do in a million years.

He leaned in and swept her into a kiss.

This time, it was Misty's turn to be caught off guard. Her eyes widened, but she quickly reciprocated. The redhead had never felt so happy in her life. She felt like she could fly. She wanted to squeal with happiness or maybe faint.

At last, Ash pulled away. He rubbed the back of his head, abashed, and laughed nervously. "S-sorry about that..."

Misty gave him a warm smile. "Don't be," she replied, and pulled him into another hug.

Drew looked at Misty and Ash, then at May. She was staring at the couple with a dreamy smile on her face. Then she turned to him and with that same smile. Drew could have sworn his heart melted right then.

He gave her a meaningful look. For a moment, May just froze, realizing his intentions. Then she blushed and nodded slightly.

He took that as permission and kissed her.

When both couples pulled away, they turned to see Brock kicking the dirt and muttering stuff about how "everyone else has their perfect couples, but do I? Noooooo. All I've got is a really bad impulsive habit that kicks in when I see a pretty girl..."

Misty gave Brock a playful shove. She was feeling lighthearted. "Oh, come on, Brock," the Gym Leader laughed. "You'll find her someday."

Brock sighed heavily. "I sure hope so."

Gary, meanwhile, had watched the whole thing with a slight smirk on his face. Ash and Misty. It had been obvious to him from the beginning, but apparently it had taken Ash four more years to figure it out. Oh, well. At least he'd managed to see it at all.

Suddenly, something struck Gary. "Hey... does anyone have a communication device? I need to contact my grandfather..."

Misty looked up, confused. "What do you mean?"

Gary explained, with the help of Ash, Brock, and Max.

When he finished, Misty shook her head. "No... no, I just don't think you should, Gary."

Gary was taken aback. "Why not? Misty, Granddad's the only family I've got and he just saw me _die. _I think he deserves to know that I'm alive now."

Misty shook her head again. "Gary, if Team Rocket could hack Napaj's broadcasting system, I doubt they'd have a problem with listening in on your call. And if they found out you're alive, we would all be in a whole lot more danger than we apparently already are."

"But... can't I contact him _somehow?"_ Gary protested.

"The fewer people who know you're alive and who know our whereabouts, the better." She replied with a sigh. "Once this all gets solved, you can tell him, Gary. But for now, if what you say is true, we need to gather the rest of the Chosen ones and stop Giovanni. Otherwise, we have a deadly disaster and probably a war on our hands."

Gary bit his lip and looked away. He knew she was right. "Okay," he said quietly.

_Just hang on, Gramps. Please. Just hang on,_ Gary thought desperately. _I'll be back. I promise. _

_... _

**Well, I think that was a good chapter! Poor Professor Oak... well, at least now I get to keep writing heartbreak and grief! Torturing characters can be FUN! *maniacal grin* HOPEFULLY, next chapter will be up soon! Thank you all... oh, and before I go, I would like to thank MeliaAntiqua and Typhlosion8 for loyally reviewing on every chapter (or almost every one). You two are awesome! **


	23. Chapter 23: Dying from the Inside

**Typhlosion8 kind of begged me for some WishfulShipping fluff in a review, so I decided to add some! *cheers from all of the WishfulShippers and boos from the NegaiShippers but there are really no boos because NOBODY IS A NEGAISHIPPER* **

**Also, this chapter does some explaining on how the Black Hands did their kidnapping thing and we reflect back on Reggie, because, well, he can't be in a very good state now can he? Also, a tearjerker about Professor Oak and I misspelled deja vulnerable at some point in the story so don't get mad! **

**And I made a Christmas special story. I think you guys will like it. **

**AND enjoy some Pikachu-shaped cookies! I have 137 flavors! INCLUDING CHICKEN ENCHILADA FLAVOR! And any others you feel like naming. :3 Enjoy and enjoy this chapter, too! **

**May: Quit with the author's note! *grabs a cookie* MINE! **

Cilan couldn't believe this. Team Rocket had _slaughtered_ a young Trainer in front of the entire Napaj nation. The connoisseur was sure that a well put-together organization such a Team Rocket would only ever do something as reckless as that if they had a plan, or they were confident they could fight back against anything that the police, the Champions, the Elite Four, the Gym Leaders, and anyone else who felt like attacking, could throw at them. Chances were, they had a plan.

They wanted attention - the fact that they had broadcasted the murder made it obvious. But that could not be the only reason.

Maybe they were trying to draw someone in? After all, many different people were connected to Gary, Cilan was sure.

Giovanni had made it clear that Team Rocket wanted to make an announcement of their power. But Cilan had a feeling that it was more than that. If he knew Team Rocket (excluding Jessie, James, and Meowth - they were a class by themselves) like he thought he did, then there was a hidden motive, and this announcement was crucial to whatever plan they had. Now all he needed to do was figure out why. He needed to know their hidden motive.

"Cilan?" Iris said quietly. She stepped into his room, and he smiled, glad to have the company. She grinned and pulled a swivel chair up to the hospital bed, but the grin soon faded and she sighed.

"Cilan, I figured something out," she spoke in a voice so small he could barely hear. "And I... I don't think it's very good news, either."

Cilan's eyes widened, and he sat up a little straighter in the bed, wincing slightly. Moving was still somewhat difficult for him, and it probably would be for a while...

Cilan snapped his thoughts back to what Iris had said. She figured something out...? What could she mean by that, though...?

"You... you know how you said you thought all of the attacks on Ash, Max, Dawn, and - " Iris's breath caught on the fourth name, and she restarted her sentence. "You know how you said you thought all of those attacks were connected?"

Cilan nodded slowly, not quite seeing where this was going.

"W-well... all of those Trainers who were kidnapped by Team Rocket... you manage to connect their deaths... o-only two days before we were attacked."

Cilan's green eyes widened.

"So for some reason," Cilan said, seeing where she was headed, "Team Rocket wants to kidnap us - the ones who are connected to Ash in some way. But when they attacked us, Iris, they were trying to - to kill. Because by then, we knew too much. Both of us, we were figuring out their plan, so they tried to kill one of the two of us, hoping that would keep the other quiet. And with... with G-Gary..." Cilan looked away. "It's obvious that, while they want to capture us for some reason, we're still... disposable."

Iris nodded, agreeing with every word he had said. She bad already figured it out, and just needed to talk to him so he would know, and so he could confirm her suspicions.

That was when she realized something.

"Cilan," she gasped. "Their first attempt to kill one of us didn't actually work."

Cilan frowned, then nodded. "That's right, it didn't."

Iris swallowed nervously. "We're still figuring out their plans, though. We're still doing exactly what they wanted to stop us from. So... so do you think they would try again?"

Cilan's breath quickened. "Iris... I-I don't doubt that they would."

...

She watched them carefully.

She had failed the first time. She wanted to shoot both of them - two shots each, one to the heart, one to the head. That made four shots, total. Four deadly little bullets, each hitting their mark perfectly.

But he had seen the gun. He had pushed the girl out if the way and taken all of the hits. One to the arm, two to the stomach, one to the chest - but not his heart.

It wasn't enough to kill him, though.

She knew her job was to either capture them or kill them. Killing them had already failed once. She needed to capture them.

Just like with that blue-haired girl.

The young coordinator had taken the bullet but hadn't died, so capturing ended up working out better. Now it was like a case of deja vu. **(Excuse my spelling there, it's a weird word so I dunno if I spelled it right or not.) **Capture, not kill.

The Black Hands, a group of Team Rocket elites, had always worked well with fire. And they never, ever failed to kill or capture a target. Sometimes, they needed a couple tries... but that was still much better than those stupid executives and admins. They never succeeded at anything. But the Black Hands always succeeded.

Now, to set the hospital on fire.

...

The little Pokémon had been watching them, and helping out whenever she could. She even managed to convince Arceus to bring Gary back to life.

As night fell, Shaymin resumed her Land Forme. She hid in a bush near where the eleven Trainers were hiding out and proceeded to watch them.

They had all built a small wooden sheltering of stray tree branches, using their Pokémon to help them. Vine Whip never failed to hold branches in place, after all!

Now, they had started a small fire in the cover of their little hideout. It had been very, very cold lately, and the Sinnoh region had a cold climate already. Shaymin shivered. She knew exactly why it had been so cold...

She shook her head. She couldn't focus on that now! Gathering up all of her courage, Shaymin bounded out of the bush and over to the group of Trainers. They didn't notice her. They were too deep in their conversation. Shaymin grinned. She could change that easily.

Shaymin crouched, tensing her muscles, and then leaped straight into Dawn's arms.

_Hello!_ Shaymin giggled. _Miss me? _

Dawn blinked and stared at her.

_Aw_, _c'mon_, Shaymin pouted. _At_ _least ACT happy to see me! _

Dawn broke into a smile. "I don't have to act! I'm very glad to see you!"

Shaymin grinned. _Yay!_ Then she looked over at Gary.

_I'm sure YOU are happy to see me._ She gave him a pointed look.

"M-me?" Gary looked confused.

_Yup! You should be real grateful! After all, if not for me, you'd be dead right now. _

"Wait, what?" Ash exclaimed, staring at Shaymin.

_Oh, hi, Ash! _Shaymin giggled again. _Yeah, I convinced Arceus to bring your friend Gary back to life._

Gary frowned, still comprehending what the Gratitude Pokémon had just said. Then he smiled at Shaymin. "Well, thanks," he said. "It really is nice to not be dead."

_You're welcome! See, Ash, you could really learn a lesson from Gary. He's grateful, see! _Shaymin pointed out.

"Hey!" Ash protested. "I'm grateful to you, too!"

Shaymin yawned. _That's nice. I'm tired. _

Then she promptly fell asleep in Dawn's arms.

...

Professor Oak sat at his kitchen table, a blank stare on his face.

Delia had made breakfast for the both of them, but his sat untouched in front of him. She had not expected him to eat, but she made some anyway.

Delia slid into the chair beside him.

"Samuel," she said quietly. "I know how you feel."

Professor Oak nodded, but his expression didn't change. It was true. She did know how he felt. Delia's words were not empty, because she knew how it felt to lose everything you have.

It turned out Ash wasn't dead after all.

But Gary was gone forever.

There was one image forever burned into Professor Oak's mind: The torn, destroyed body of his grandson, the only family he had, lying lifelessly in a growing puddle of blood.

That was all that Professor Oak could think about. That one image.

The Professor's eyes stared blankly at his plate of food as tears trickled slowly down his face.

...

Reggie Rebolledo was a mess.

First his brother disappeared. When he didn't return to the house after two hours, Reggie began to worry. When it got dark and Paul still wasn't back, Reggie started to panic. After the second day passed, and then the third, Paul was getting more and more scared. There were speculations all over the news about how the four deaths of the Trainers that had all occurred in the past month were connected to that kid Ash Ketchum. Only when Paul disappeared did Reggie remember that Paul had been a rival to Ash for about a year, and they had several battles.

Reggie knew Paul could hold his own, but he also knew Team Rocket didn't play fair. If they wanted something, they would do everything they could to get it. And that was what terrified Reggie the most. Because the one person in the universe Reggie knew he would always love and always had loved was Paul. And if Team Rocket wanted Paul dead, they would get it. So for the entire four days Paul was missing, Reggie tortured himself with one question:

Had Paul been killed?

Then, when the media exploded with the pictures and story of how Ash Ketchum, Max Maple, and Dawn Berlitz had apparently returned from the dead, Reggie was relieved. Paul was there, in those pictures. Paul was okay. Paul was _alive._

But then, the very next day, Team Rocket decided to make their move. They murdered Gary Oak and broadcasted it to the entire Napaj nation.

And so here was Reggie Rebolledo, worrying about nothing more than the safety of his brother, and knowing that absolutely anything could happen to him out there.

...

Iris was tired.

It was dark out by now, and she was ready to head back to the hotel where she was staying with Cilan's brothers. They weren't allowed to camp out in the hospital lobby day and night, so they rented an hotel suite about a ten minutes' walk from the hospital and slept there. It was a two-room suite, thank Arceus, so she didn't have to share a room with Cilan's brothers.

Just as she was about to leave, though, the fire alarm sounded.

Iris looked around, startled. A fire alarm. There was a fire. A fire... She had to get out!

But she didn't make the smart choice and calmly exit the building.

She made the _human_ choice and raced back to Cilan's room.

"Cilan!" She yelled, flinging open his door. He was struggling to get out of his bed, and she quickly helped him to his feet.

"We have to get out, Cilan!" She said desperately.

He nodded, but just as she opened the door to the hallway, a wall of flames sprang up in front of them. Iris's eyes widened and she backed away.

"Try the window," Cilan offered, and she nodded.

It was shut tight and padlocked.

Now Iris was really starting to get scared.

She turned back to Cilan with tears in her eyes. There was no way out of this.

Cilan wrapped his arms around her torso and pulled her into a kiss. In that moment, they had both realized there was almost no chance of their survival. The flames were coming in closer and there was no way out. She was going to die. They both were.

But as the the hospital's supporters failed, the entire place came crashing down on top of them, and her world turned black, Iris had never felt more alive.

...

Just as the building's supporters gave way, she swooped in and hit them both with tranquilizer darts - one, two. Then she called out her Metagross, who used Psychic to teleport them out of the building and to the base. It was as simple as that - and all that the victims ever remembered was the burning building crashing onto them.

Burning buildings, tranquilizer darts, and last-second teleportation. It was a technique that the Black Hands had mastered. This was the perfect way for them to do their work but stay secret, and remain hidden in the shadows.

This was the kind of simple, yet flawless technique that would bring Team Rocket to glory.

...

**(The following might be a tearjerker, kind of.) **

...

Professor Oak was dying from the inside.

He had once had a wonderful life, a wonderful family. Then, one by one, he watched them disappear. And now, he had nothing left.

His mother died when he was young - he was only 15 at the time. She watched him go to three different leagues, and was always and forever his biggest supporter. She used to call him "Sam" as a sort of pet name, and a few of his friends called him that too, as a pet name. When he decided to follow the path of a Pokémon Professor, she greatly encouraged his choice. If there was one thing his mother taught him, it was to always, always do what your heart told you. Sometimes, the choices weren't always black and white. Sometimes there wasn't a right or wrong. But your heart always knows what's right.

Then, one day, she started to get tired. She wasn't really herself. The doctors said she had a terminal illness - she wasn't going to get better, ever. Samuel didn't believe them; he couldn't. He stopped traveling and stayed with her. He made her breakfast. He talked with her and shared stories to cheer them both up. And he watched as her illness slowly took her over.

Then, one day, it happened. And she was gone.

After that, whenever anyone called him "Sam" as a nickname, he would snap in return, "It's Samuel!" The nickname belonged to his mother, and she wasn't there to use it.

After she died, he never got back into traveling. He stayed back home with his father and worked from home, contacting other professors, sometimes going out on field projects, and keeping his heartbroken father company while his two brothers, then 10 and 12 years old, were out traveling. But there was a sense of emptiness in their lonely home, and there was no way to change that feeling, as if it was a broken toy that couldn't be fixed.

Then, one day, while out shopping at the PokéMart in Crimson City, his hometown, he met Amelia.

She was beautiful, and so well-mannered. He saw her struggling with a huge load of groceries coming out, and offered to help her carry them. She admitted that most of it was food and medical supplies for the wild Pokémon that stayed at her house, most of whom were sick or injured. She invited him to see her house, and he did just that. At some point, he got her number, and... well, the rest was history.

When they were married, they moved to a house in Pallet Town. Samuel's mother had been there once and was always talking about how it was so peaceful and full of wonderful Pokémon and wonderful people. He had always wanted to see it because of how she loved it so, and also...

...also because there was a young boy who he desperately wanted to meet who he knew would one day be born in this very town.

He fell in love with the cozy little town the moment he saw it, and he and Amelia promptly bought a house there.

When they had their son Jon, Samuel was sure it was the best day of his life. But one day, when Jon was only four, a large maple tree close to their house was struck by lightning from a raging thunderstorm, and the sparks lit their house afire. Amelia died trying to save all of the Pokémon inside. The last one in the house and the one she died saving was a Pikachu, whom Professor Oak decided to keep as a memory of her.

One day, that Pikachu started disappearing into the woods each day for longer and longer. And then she came home with an egg, completely surprising Samuel. By then, he was a full-fledged Pokémon Professor. For some reason, though, the egg refused to hatch. It just stayed as an egg and really did nothing.

Then Jon and Melissa died.

They were going out to dinner, and the Professor was to watch their six-year-old son Gary while they were out. But they never got to have their date. They died in a car crash on the way there, devastating both Gary and the Professor.

Soon after, in a crazy lab accident, a supercharged bolt of electricity struck the Pikachu's egg. When it faded, all that could be seen was a tiny ball of pale yellow fur.

Slowly, the ball uncurled, and there was a little Pichu. That Pichu turned out to be the most rebellious, most disobedient Pokémon that Professor Oak had ever met.

Professor Oak did everything he could to solve the mystery of Pichu's egg while also trying hard to raise Gary well. When Gary was almost nine, the Pikachu which Professor Oak had raised since Amelia's death evolved into a Raichu after coming across a Thunder Stone hidden in one of the Professor's drawers somewhere.

About three months later, the mischievous young Pichu sneaked into Professor Oak's lab during an experiment he was doing with Pokémon evolution. As a result of some meddling, there was an explosion and Pichu was engulfed in a bright and powerful electric field. The light faded, and there was a Pikachu.

Professor Oak recognized that Pikachu.

He recognized it from a time when he was only 10 years old and helped a Celebi in the woods someplace in Johto...

Anyway! Apparently, that Pokémon was attracted to lab accidents. And it really didn't seem to like Professor Oak, anyway. He needed to find a Trainer for it... and soon... and there was a certain young raven-haired boy - one of Gary's best friends, actually - who Professor Oak had his eye on. A boy who he had wanted to meet for a very long time, and a boy who was part of the reason he moved to Pallet Town in the first place.

Then Gary began his journey, and Professor Oak found a Trainer for Pikachu. It didn't seem like it would work out at first, but Professor Oak had memories from about 40 years ago (or a year in the future, you could think of it either way) that made him sure he did the right thing. And Professor Oak was proud to see Gary excelling as a Trainer on his journey.

But then the attacks began.

And when the Viridian Gym collapsed in that fire and Professor Oak thought Gary to be dead, it crushed him emotionally. It was only a few days, however, before it was revealed that Gary was, in fact, alive, immediately bringing the Professor's spirits up.

And then, the very next day, he was once more devastated to see Gary murdered right before his eyes. But this time, there could be no coming back. Professor Oak saw the Persian's claws tear at Gary's skin, saw his grandson bleeding out his life, and could do nothing about it.

And now he felt completely empty.

Because now there really was nothing left for him.

Slowly, Samuel Oak walked into his bedroom and unclipped a Pokéball from his belt. He released a young Raichu, who looked up at him happily before leaping into his arms.

Professor Oak's expression did not change as he petted the Raichu's head. Tears trickled down his face as memory after memory resurfaced in his mind, all leading up to the most recent and most painful of all.

Without Gary, Professor Oak was dying from the inside.

...

**Oooh! Did I do a good job explaining Pikachu's and Professor Oak's pasts? I really hope you liked this chapter, because I spent a lot of time on it. Review, of course, because you're so awesome and awesome people review! Also, read Typhlosion8's story about Pikachu for a different take on Pikachu's past. It's pretty interesting. **

**Well, thanks for reading, I hope you cried, read that Christmas special of mine, and REVIEW! **

**Ash: Kit, they GET IT ALREADY! **

**May: Cookies... **

**Ash: Oh, cookies?! *takes one of May's cookies and eats it* **

**May: HEY! MY COOKIE! GIVE THAT BACK! *eyes turn to flames* **

**Ohhhhhh no... I feel sorry for Ash and anyone else who may steal one of May's cookies... *hears a crash and winces* Yikes... **


	24. Chapter 24: SPECIAL: The Guessing Game

**Okay, guys, this chapter is a special chapter! ENTER THE CONTEST FOR A CHANCE TO WIN... SOMETHING AWESOME! I won't tell you what, though. First read this chapter and then the author's note at the bottom to find out what I mean. The contest will end when I update the story, which will be in one or two days - Christmas or Christmas Eve. Hope you enjoy this chapter! **

...

"Chosen," Max muttered. "Chosen..."

"Max?" May asked worriedly, looking down at her little brother. "You okay?"

"Y-yeah." Max assured her. "I'm fine. It's just that... well, I have a feeling that when Shaymin wakes up, she'll have a lot to tell us. About the prophecy."

"What do you mean, Max?" May frowned.

"Well, see, the prophecy said there would be sixteen, right? And then it said they would be 'Chosen by Legends' or something like that... so I was thinking, does that mean each of us is Chosen by a Legendary Pokémon? It would make sense, with Shaymin showing up and all, and I get a pretty good idea of which Legend chose her..." Max laughed a little. "But, well, if I'm right then Shaymin will definitely be able to confirm it."

"It would be kind of funny," May mused, "if you _are _right. It's like, the Pokémon choosing the Trainers instead of the Trainers choosing the Pokémon!"

Max nodded. "It is funny to think about it."

"If you are right, which Legendary do you think chose me?"

Max laughed. "Can't you figure that one out yourself?"

May thought about it, and then her eyes lit up. "Manaphy?"

"I'm betting you're right." Max grinned.

As the two siblings lay in their corner of the makeshift shelter and talked, Ash suddenly spoke up.

"Well, which one do you think chose me?" He said from across the room, sitting up.

Max and May sat up as well. "Hmm... I would guess maybe Mew. Remember that time in the Tree of Beginning?"

Misty yawned and sat up, joining the conversation. She had been sleeping right next to Ash. "Well, my guess is Latias, Lugia, Celebi, Mew, or Mewtwo. Hmm, or maybe Entei."

May frowned. "That's a lot. Why all those Legendaries?"

Misty grinned. "Because Ash met them all."

"What?!" Max was obviously shocked. "How could he...?! You know what, never mind. It's probably a long story. Long enough to make a movie about it... or even a bunch of movies..."

Ash frowned. "Would a movie about me even be interesting?"

Now Brock spoke up, joining the conversation as well. "Ash, I think someone could make a whole TV show of your life. And movies, too. Maybe even merchandise to go with it. Even games!"

"Why d'you say that?" Ash questioned, confused. "Even if someone did..."

"Ash, you have done some of the craziest things any human has ever done. You have had so many crazy experiences many can only dream of. People would watch a show about you all the time." Misty stated.

Dawn yawned, stretched, and sat up. "Have to agree with you there, Misty. So, we're talking about how Ash's life would make a really good TV show?"

"Well, we were really talking about how Max thinks that each of the sixteen mentioned in the prophecy were chosen by the Legendaries," May said.

"Really?" Dawn perked up. "So... I'm guessing you guys think I was chosen by Shaymin?"

"Yep," Max confirmed.

_Well, I think you guys are pretty smart. How'd you come to that conclusion anyway? _Shaymin mumbled, unfurling from where she was curled in Dawn's arms.

Ash's eyes widened. "Guys, wake up the others."

Brock gently shook Gary awake, Max not-so-gently kicked Drew's arm, and Misty nudged Trip, who then woke Emily. Dawn tried to shake Paul awake, resulting in some very colorful language from the mauve-haired Trainer. May covered Max's ears.

"Paul!" Dawn whispered. "Come on, you need to get up. I think we've figured out the prophecy."

"Can't you figure out the prophecy later?" Paul grumbled as he sat up, muttering a few more not-so-nice words.

_I don't like him, _Shaymin decided, pointing a little white paw a Paul. _Why won't he be nicer?_

"Forget him," May replied. "He's never nice." Paul rolled his eyes, but made no comment.

_Look, you guys, _Shaymin said. _That kid Max is right. You were each Chosen by a Legendary. All of you. And I know who chose each one of you! _Shaymin grinned.

After a momentary pause, Gary spoke up. "Are you... going to tell us?" The brown-haired Trainer prompted.

_I'm getting there! _Shaymin replied. _Well, first of all, each of you was Chosen because of your special aura, NOT your connection to Ash. We only realized the connection later. That was when we all realized it was all because of Ash in the first place that you had your special auras. _

"So... Ash was the reason we were Chosen, but you just didn't realize that?" Dawn said.

_Yep! _Shaymin grinned. _And I chose you, Dawn! _

"Of course," Brock nodded. "That makes sense. And, let me guess: Manaphy chose May?"

_That's right. And as for the rest of you... _Shaymin paused and looked around as all of the Trainers watched her intently.

_Why don't we play a guessing game? _Shaymin giggled.

"Oh no," Ash groaned.

"Seriously?" Trip grumbled. "You woke me up for _this_?"

"Okay, guys... just, um, relax. We'll play Shaymin's guessing game. Then at least we'll know which Legendary chose which Trainer, even if it takes forever..." Dawn reasoned.

Misty sighed. "Dawn, how can you put up with that Pokémon?!"

_Hey! _Shaymin pouted. _I am a perfectly good Pokémon! _

"All right, all right!" Brock was starting to look stressed out. "Well, let's just get this game over with. Which Trainer should we do first?"

"Me!" Misty piped up. "I think it'll be pretty easy to guess mine."

"Okay... well... is it a Water-type?" May asked curiously. She knew that was Misty's specialty, so it made sense that a Water-type Legendary would choose her.

_Yes! _Shaymin giggled.

"Well, we know it can't be Manaphy... so there are a few others that it could be. And it's probably from Kanto or Johto, because Misty traveled through both of those regions, so..." Max frowned.

Misty smirked. "I think I know."

She asked Shaymin, who replied with a _ding ding ding!, _telling Misty that her answer was correct.

"Okay, Brock next. I think a Rock- or Ground-type from either Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, or Sinnoh is a good guess," Dawn said thoughtfully.

"Oh!" Max said, eyes widened. "I've got it!" He shared his guess, resulting in another _ding ding ding! _from Shaymin.

"Now Max?" Misty asked.

"Oh! I remember the time he became best friends with Jirachi! Is it Jirachi?" May guessed.

_Nope. Jirachi's asleep. _Shaymin said as she shook her head. She grinned. This was fun!

"Well, he doesn't exactly have a specialty, but he chose a Water-type starter and his home region is Hoenn, so..." Emily joined in.

"I know!" May said excitedly. Her second guess turned out to be right. She turned to Drew. "Okay, it's your turn."

"Hmm... Well, that's a tricky one. Drew, have you ever had any encounters with any Legendaries?" Ash asked with a frown.

"Not really," Drew replied. "I think it's a little weird that you all have had all these encounters. I mean, most people search their whole lives for Legendaries and never find them..."

"Well," Ash began. "I remember we visited LaRousse City once, right, Brock? And we had that crazy adventure there with Deoxys?"

"Yeah," Brock replied.

"And that's Drew's hometown, isn't it?" Ash pressed on.

"Uh-huh," Drew replied.

"Well, maybe it's Deoxys, then!" Ash guessed.

_Nope, _Shaymin sighed. _Good guess, but Deoxys didn't choose anyone. _

"Well, then, let's think," Emily jumped in. "It's not Jirachi or either of the two Hoenn Legendaries we already named, so... oh! I think I know!"

Emily's guess was correct. She grinned. This was turning out to be kind of fun.

"All right, so, I guess Paul now?" Dawn suggested.

"Fine," Paul grumbled. "We should just get this over with anyway."

_Well, I have a hint! Think about Paul's name, okay? _Shaymin piped up.

"His name..." Trip frowned, deep in thought. "Sinnoh Legendaries... Okay, what about this one?" Trip's guess was correct.

"Wait, if that Legendary chose Paul, and we're thinking names, than wouldn't it make sense for Dialga to have Chosen Dawn?" Drew jumped in.

Shaymin shrugged. _I beat him to it._

That made Dawn laugh, and so did Ash and May, and soon, they were all laughing a little, except Paul. Laughter is, after all, somewhat contagious. And, besides Paul, they all really liked to laugh, anyway.

"Okay, should we do Trip now?" Gary asked, turning to the Unovan Trainer.

"Okay," Trip shrugged.

"Well... listen, guys, I think that Cilan and Iris are probably Chosen, too, and so that would make three Trainers from Unova, total." Ash jumped in.

"And the big three Legendaries from Unova... oh, I see!" Trip realized. "So we're probably each Chosen by one of them."

"Exactly," Ash replied. "And, well, thinking about them, I know Cilan's all about facts and truth. And Iris is more of a free spirit, so she usually focuses more on her ideals! So that means..."

Ash told Shaymin what he thought about who Iris and Cilan were Chosen by, and he was right.

"And so that means that the only one of the three left is probably the one who chose me," Trip reasoned.

Trip's guess about who chose him was also right.

"Okay, so who's left?" Misty looked around. "Ash, Gary, and Emily, right?"

Ash frowned. "Well... I mean, I never actually knew Emily. Are you sure she's Chosen?" He asked Shaymin.

Shaymin nodded. _I don't know how, but Emily has her own special aura. That's why she was Chosen, whether she had any connection to you or not. _

Emily smiled. "Well, I think I know exactly who chose me."

"Huh?" Max was confused. "How would you know that?"

"Easy," Emily replied. "He came and told me."

"Wait, what?!" Ash's eyes widened.

Emily smirked and told Shaymin her guess.

She was right.

"Now Gary," Brock said, turning to said Trainer.

Gary sighed. "Truth is, I've really got no clue."

Pikachu grinned. He had a good idea of who had Chosen Gary. Of the three Legendary birds, one had come to him while he was with Emily. And since Pikachu was pretty sure Ash already knew who had Chosen him, Pikachu guessed that the one who came to visit him was the one who Chose Gary.

Pikachu padded up to Shaymin and said something in Pokémon language.

Shaymin nodded. _That's right, Pikachu! That's who Chose Gary. _

And lastly, Ash.

Ash smiled down at Pikachu. "You know who Chose me, don't you, buddy?"

Pikachu nodded.

"We both know," Ash grinned. "I had a couple different encounters with Legendary. Saved him from Team Rocket once. He even accidentally killed me."

"Hold on a second..." Misty frowned. "Wait, you mean..."

"Yes I do!" Ash replied with a smirk. He told Shaymin.

He was correct.

The guessing game was over.

Now they all knew.

...

**Okay! Hope you liked it. I had fun writing it. :3 Not my best chapter, but still fun! I am doing a special raffle contest, as I mentioned in the author's note at the top, and to get raffle tickets with your usernames on them, all you gotta do is answer this trivia question: **

**Which Legendary chose which Trainer? If you've watched all of the movies and most of the episodes and know enough about the characters and saw all of my little hints, this will be a snap! I'll enter one ticket for ya per correct guess! PM me or review with your answers! **

**I hope you liked this fun little chapter. It didn't have too much to do with the story other than the Trainers finding out who Chose them, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway! **

**:3 Peace out, folks! **

**(Oh, and did you catch that little joke I did about how Ash's life would make a good TV show? We all know how true that is, right?!) **


	25. Chapter 25: Gary Breaks Down

**Okay, guys! Your first opportunity to get into the raffle is over, but I've got another set of trivia questions for you this chapter, so you can still get your name in that raffle! I decided I will have three drawings - that means a first, second, and third prize, which will be revealed next chapter. They're all awesome, in my opinion! And now, to reveal which Legendaries chose which Trainer: **

**ASH - Mewtwo. Everyone knows Ash died in the first movie, right? I made this one too easy. **

**MISTY - Suicune. It's the only Water-type Legendary from Kanto or Johto. LUGIA AIN'T A WATER-TYPE+, FOLKS. **

**BROCK - Groudon. The only Rock- or Ground-type from any of the regions that Brock traveled to with Ash. Except Regirock. But... it wasn't Regirock. Sorry. XD**

**MAX - Kyogre. The only Water-type Legendary from Hoenn. **

**MAY - Manaphy. doesn't count for the raffle, because I revealed it. May and Manaphy are just SO CUTE! **

**DREW - Rayquaza. With Kyogre and Groudon already taken, the last of the "big three" from Hoenn. **

**DAWN - Shaymin. Just like with May, this one doesn't count for the raffle. How will Dawn put up with Shaymin, though?! **

**PAUL - Palkia. MeliaAntiqua says she'd have chosen Giratina, but... Diamond & Pearl. Dialga & Palkia. Dawn & Paul. Do I see a pattern here?! And you know how Shaymin said Dialga wanted to choose Dawn?! **

**CILAN - Reshiram. I think this one might've been trickier than the others, but still, no real challenge, right? **

**IRIS - Zekrom. If you can get Cilan's, you can get Iris's easily! **

**TRIP - Kyurem. The last of Unova's "big three", so it's easy to get once you get Zekrom and Reshiram. **

**EMILY - Articuno. You remember that presence Emily felt way back a whole bunch of chapters ago? **

**GARY - Zapdos. The presence Pikachu felt way back when? It's a little weird how Gary's Legend visited Pikachu, I know, but the story's plot has developed more since that chapter, so there were some slight changes to the plot and the Zapdos-visiting-Pikachu bit still had to fit in somewhere, so this is how I made it work. **

**RITCHIE - Moltres. Extra nerd points to whoever got this one! Ritchie felt Moltres's presence a whole bunch of chapters ago. He wasn't in the guessing game, but it's not too hard to figure it out! **

**Thanks for playing the guessing game, Merry Christmas, and enjoy this chapter along with a virtual assortment of holiday goodies! Candy canes, gingerbread houses, cinnamon rolls, apple pie, and Christmas cookies! Have fun and please overeat all these virtual goodies! **

**... **

Professor Oak needed to know where Ash and the others were.

Gary was gone. Professor Oak couldn't let anyone else go through the pain he was going through now - he couldn't let anything happen to any of the other children. He knew what it was like to lose a child, a grandchild, a mother, a wife. He could not let anyone else go through such pain.

So he needed to contact Ash.

Professor Oak's hands shook as he picked up the video phone's receiver. He had sent Ash an XTransceiver soon after the boy arrived in Kalos, saying it would be useful for keeping in touch. Now he was thanking Arceus he had done so.

Slowly, Professor Oak put in the number. He did not want to talk to Ash. The only thing it would do was hurt the both of them. Whenever the Professor thought of Ash, he had always thought of Gary, as well. And now...

Struggling to hold in the tears, the Professor finished dialing the number and waited. It rang. And rang. What if Ash didn't pick up? Did he even have his XTransceiver with him anymore?

Finally, the ringing stopped and Ash's face appeared on the screen. "Hello?" Ash frowned, obviously surprised and somewhat confused. "Professor Oak?"

...

The eleven Trainers were all gathering up their things and getting ready to keep moving. Staying in one place was dangerous for all of them right now, and they had already come to a decision late last night after Shaymin's "Guessing Game" anyway. They needed to find the other five Chosen Ones. Iris and Cilan were two of them, obviously. Ash thought Ritchie might have been, as well, but he couldn't be sure. And Clemont and Serena were probably also Chosen. Shaymin confirmed this, saying Bonnie had that aura, too, but she wasn't a Trainer, so she didn't get Chosen.

So now, the group was spread out, mostly just chatting while waiting for May, Drew, and Dawn to come back from out in the woods, where they were trying to gather food and supplies. They had volunteered to go earlier.

"Hey, Ash?" Misty said shyly. She could have slapped herself. Why was she being so shy?! It was stupid. She was NEVER shy, especially not around Ash...

"Yeah, Misty?" Ash looked up, seeming somewhat absentminded.

"Ash, I..." she swallowed, trying to force herself to continue. For some reason, she felt her face getting hot. _Nononononono_ _Misty_ _nononononono_... _stop_ _acting_ _like_ _this, this is stupid...! Nonononononono...! _

"...Misty, are you okay?" Ash prompted.

"Y-yeah," Misty muttered. Trying to sound confident, she continued. "I kept this for you. After... after the fire." She bit her lip and held out Ash's hat.

It was the hat he had worn in Kanto, the one he got from the Pokémon Expo so long ago. It was one of the few things that had been salvaged from the wreckage of the Ketchum household. The one he had worn in Kalos was with his mother.

Ash's eyes widened. This was a very important hat to him. Even after he started wearing a new one when he went to Hoenn, this hat stated safe in his room, where he would sometimes pick it up and just stare at it for awhile, lost in memories. As Ash slowly took the cap from Misty's hands and put it on, he smiled. It was the icing on the cake. The hat was practically a symbol of Ash Ketchum.

Misty laughed. "Perfect," she said. "Perfect."

Ash nodded. "That's right. It's perfect." He grinned at her. "Perfect, just like us. Right?"

Misty blinked. "Wait... what do you..." Her face turned as red as her hair as she comprehended what he had just said. "What the...! Ash!"

Ash just grinned his trademark crooked grin. Then, suddenly, a ringing noise came from his wrist. Ash frowned and flicked his wrist towards his face as if looking at a watch. For a moment, Misty thought it was a watch. Then she realized it was actually an XTransceiver - a special device with a lot of different functions, including calling people. Like someone was apparently doing right now.

Ash frowned when he saw the caller I.D., then pressed the button to answer it. "Hello?" He said, obviously confused. "Professor Oak?"

...

"Hello? Professor Oak?"

From a few yards away, Gary's head snapped up, interrupting his conversation with Max. The two were getting along very well, and Max seemed really interested in all of Gary's studies as an aspiring Pokémon Professor. But now, hearing his grandfather's name, Gary froze, not making a sound. He stared at Ash and the XTransceiver for a moment, then at Misty, who was frantically gesturing for him to back away, to move, to not let the Professor know he was there.

Gary did so, backing up against a tree. He couldn't risk the dangers that might come with his grandfather finding out that he was alive. But he stayed close enough to listen to and watch the conversation.

Big mistake.

"Ash..." Professor Oak began. "Look, I... I just wanted to... to check up on you. I... didn't want... I wanted to make sure you were okay. Team Rocket... I didn't want them to hurt you like..." Professor Oak's voice cracked. "L-like Gary..."

Gary felt like his heart was being wrenched out of his chest. He couldn't bear to hear his grandfather like this. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"Professor Oak..." Ash's voice was watery, probably for the same reason Gary was crying. "I... we're... we're fine." Ash looked down. He couldn't bear to see Professor Oaklike this any longer.

Misty took over for Ash. "Professor..." she tried to act as though she were emotionally hurt, to keep up the ruse of Gary being dead, even though the Professor probably wouldn't notice anyway if she didn't, looking at the state he was in. "Professor, we're... we're fine. We can't tell you where we are, though. I just... it could..."

Professor Oak nodded tiredly. "I know. It could... it could put you in danger. I... I've seen what they can do. I saw them... with... with Gary..." the Professor seemed to choke on his words. "I... I can't... I have to go..." Then he ended the call.

Gary clenched his fists. Tears were rolling down his cheeks. To see and hear his grandfather in that state... Gary sank to the ground against the back of the tree, his breathing unsteady.

The world thought he was dead, and so did his only living relative, and it was going to stay that way for who-knows-how-long.

Great. Just great.

Gary Oak _never_ cried, but now, with his grandfather thinking he was dead and being an emotional wreck, and there was nothing Gary could do about it, he couldn't stop the tears.

So Gary hugged his knees to his chest and just continued to cry.

...

"Articuno is doing its job well," Giovanni said with a creepy smile. "The entire Napaj nation is, bit by bit, getting colder and windier. They don't notice it yet, but it'll be upon them before they know it."

Persian purred happily in Giovanni's lap. The Pokémon was proud of what he had done the day before. To actually kill a Trainer was a big accomplishment to Giovanni, and he had graciously awarded Persian with better food and more of it, as well.

Archer nodded as he listened to what Giovanni was saying. It was all true. This was only the beginning of Team Rocket's plan though.

"Have the Black Hands succeeded in capturing the two from Unova?"

"Yes, Giovanni, sir." Archer replied. "They are being held in a cell together right now."

"Excellent. Tell the scientists they may begin with them now."

"Yes, sir."

Archer exited the office and headed down to the lower basement floors, where the science labs were. Finding one of the scientists, he grabbed her and pulled her aside.

"Giovanni says you may begin working with the two captives from Unova." Archer stated.

The scientist nodded quickly. "Yes, sir. I will go tell my colleagues right away."

Archer smiled evilly. This was all working out just right for Team Rocket. Just perfectly right.

...

Iris woke up in a dark, cold room.

She shivered. She had always hated the cold.

Then she frowned. Wait, how was she alive?

"Cilan? A-anyone?" She said tepidly. "Hello? Is... is anyone there?"

Beside her, the limp form of a person shifted slightly.

"Wh-wha...?" Cilan grumbled. "I... Iris?" Poo

"Cilan!" She gasped. "Are you all right?"

"I hope so," the connoisseur replied with a sigh. "I've certainly felt better."

"So...any clue what happened?" Iris said, biting her lip.

"This probably has something to do with Team Rocket and that fire," Cilan mused. "But I haven't really got any idea. Maybe we were captured?"

"It would make sense," Iris reasoned.

Then, all around them, bright fluorescent lights flashed on, and everything changed for the worse.

...

"C-Cress? Cilan?" Chili's voice shook as he called his brothers' names. They had to have made it out. They had to. They had to...

"Chili!"

The red-haired Gym Leader turned to see Cress waving and calling his name. Chili raced over to Cress and wrapped him in a hug. "Oh, thank Arceus you're okay," Chili muttered.

"But what about Cilan?" Cress wondered, eyes wide.

"I - I don't know..." Chili looked at the chaos around them, and the huge crowd. "What if..."

"Don't say that," Cress snapped. "Cilan made it out, okay?"

Chili nodded, but he was not at all reassured. Because Cress only ever snapped when he was very, very scared.

But everything was all right, wasn't it? The two brothers had easily made it out. Cilan had to have, too.

But then... Cilan was hospitalized for being shot four times... He couldn't have been very good at maneuvering through a burning building. What if...

Chili could have slapped himself. _Stop thinking like that! Cilan is fine. He made it out. I bet he's with Iris, somewhere in this crowd. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine... _

Chili just had to keep telling himself that. He had to.

Because he _would _find his brother. Cilan _would _be okay.

He had to.

...

**Okay, guys! Hope you enjoyed the chapter, plus all of those Christmas goodies! **

**Here is your second chance at getting into the raffle! Answer all of these questions in a PM and/or review the chapter separately as well! You'll get one raffle entry per correct answer! So many exclamatory sentences! I love exclamation points! Yay! **

**1. In the Diance and the Cocoon of Destruction movie, which chracter was given the first of Diancie's real diamonds (the first one that didn't fade)? **

**2. Ash was not originally going to be given a Pikachu at the beginning of the show. It was changed at the last minute. Which Pokémon was Ash originally going to be given? **

**3. A special chapter appeared at the beginning of one of the Pokémon Adventures story arcs. This chapter depicted how Green and Silver escaped the clutches of the Masked Man when they were young. Which arc (name and #) did this chapter appear at the beginning of? **

**4. Which Pokémon games are the first Nintendo-published games to be released on the same date worldwide? **

**5. Which is the first main character in the Pokémon anime to keep their Japanese name in the English dub? **

**Well, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Please review the chapter and then PM me the answers to the trivia separately, because it makes things easier. Thank you! **


	26. Chapter 26: Nothing is Normal

**Chapter 26: Nothing is Normal... **

**Welcome one, welcome all, to Chapter 26 of TACDIF! **

**Today, I just want to thank my two biggest supporters here on FanFiction: Typhlosion8 and MeliaAntiqua! You two are awesome, and thank you for your wonderful reviews and for being fabulous. :3 Just saying... you two rock...**

**Well, anyway, here are the answers for the questions from last chapter: **

**1. Bonnie **

**2. Clefairy **

**3. Arc 5: FireRed and LeafGreen **

**4. Pokémon X and Pokémon Y **

**5. Iris **

**Now, I have decided that there will be ONE raffle prize. The winner will get… *gasp*… AN OC OF YOUR OWN PUT INTO THIS STORY! *cheers from all the readers* **

**Okay… so, I am literally about to do the raffle as I am writing this. **

**...! **

**AND THE WINNER IS… **

**STARDUST902! **

**Congratulations, Star! Can I call you Star for short? Anyway, I'll PM you the form and you can PM me back the OC. As for the rest of you, I will have more raffles in the future, so you still have a chance to get a prize! Maybe in 20 chapters or so. Anyway, let's get on with THIS chapter! **

…

As they flew off on their Flying-type Pokémon once more, Gary felt like crying. Again.

He had already cried earlier. Eventually, he managed to force back the tears, but now he felt them coming again now. He couldn't stop thinking of his grandfather. He just couldn't get this one big issue out of his mind: that the only family he had thought he was dead.

And there was a question inside him, too - a burning question that he wanted the answer to, but he knew that he wasn't going to get it. He wanted to know how long this would last. How long he'd have to keep this up. How long he'd have to struggle with this burden.

They were flying off to Hoenn now. Earlier, Max had started pestering May about some Ralts he wanted to find and capture. Gary asked Ash about it, and the raven-haired Trainer gladly explained.

As it turned out, Max had promised some Ralts that he would come back to be its Trainer when he was old enough. Too soon after Max got his starter, though, he had been kidnapped, so he never had the opportunity to go back for the Pokémon. Now, Max wanted to do just that, since they had to go someplace anyway.

Now, with almost nothing on his mind besides his grandfather, Gary tried so hard not to let himself cry. He knew it would all get better eventually...

At least, he hoped so.

After an hour or so of flying over the ocean, Gary called out his Blastoise - who Misty had thankfully returned to him - and the other Trainers called out their Water-types as well. Misty called out her Gyarados and Kingdra; Drew called out his Milotic, causing Dawn to nearly faint with awe and May to almost fall into the ocean in shock; and the Trainers all climbed aboard the Water-types, recalling their Flying-types.

"Drew, since when did you get a Milotic?!" May gasped at the green-haired coordinator as the Trainers rode the waves aboard their Pokémon. She was seated behind Drew on his Milotic, with Max riding right behind her.

"Since you went off to Kanto," Drew replied. "What, you jealous?"

"O-of course not!" May fumed. "Why would you even think that, Drew?!"

"Because you nearly fell off Dawn's Togekiss when you saw it, you were so shocked," the green-haired coordinator taunted. Gary could have sworn May's eyes were on fire, she looked so mad. The brown-haired Trainer bit back a chuckle as he watched their spat.

May threw up her hands in frustration. "Argh! I was just SHOCKED, not JEALOUS! It was a surprise! Really, Drew, you can be so - MMPH!" The last part was because Drew had turned around and swiftly pressed his lips to hers.

Her eyes widened, but she soon relaxed into the kiss. For a moment, they stayed like that. Then Drew pulled away, a smirk on his face.

"You talk too much," Drew told her, then turned back to face forward. "Let's go, Milotic. We're on our way to Hoenn!"

Milotic cheered and swam even faster, while May just sat there, somewhat in shock. Had he just kissed her?

Again?

Gary was amused as he watched May's reaction. It was interesting - almost as interesting as how Ash and Misty interacted with each other sometimes. Gary bit back a laugh. However long they were going to be in hiding together, it was going to be an interesting time, that was for sure.

As he, Ash, Emily, and Trip surfed the ocean on Gary's own Blastoise, he looked around. Nothing but open ocean. No land in sight, and no sign of any people - though that was a good thing, considering the circumstances.

Gary smirked. Their circumstances were definitely not normal. He was supposedly dead, the others were considered missing (all except for Misty, Brock, Emily, and Trip) and surely Brock's and Misty's families would become suspicious of their absence soon enough. What was more, the Champions and the G-Men would surely be on the brink of unraveling this case, which could be either good or bad, and the other Chosen ones were probably also in some form of danger.

No, their circumstances were definitely not normal.

Besides the slight pang in his chest when he thought of his grandpa, the thought really did amuse him. He wondered how he had gotten himself into this mess in the first place.

Brock, Dawn, and Paul were riding on Misty's Gyarados while Misty rode solo on her Kingdra. Since Kingdra really wasn't that big, the lower half of Misty's body was actually underwater, but she really seemed to be enjoying it more that way. It was easy to tell, mainly because she kept whooping with excitement and doing tricks with Kingdra. She even tried an experiment with Kingra's Whirlpool attack that left her completely soaked. She just laughed, in bed back onto Kingdra's back, and kept going.

"You know," Brock mused, "When Ash walked into the Pewter Gym four long years ago to challenge me, I never imagined I would be right here, doing this, right now."

"I don't think any of us could have imagined this," Dawn replied. "I mean, what are the odds?"

"When you are with Ash, the odds kind of lose their job," Gary joked. Misty grinned.

"So true," the redhead agreed. "It doesn't matter what his chances are. Ash always manages to come out on top, and 'impossible' never gets a say."

Ash laughed. "Funny how that works. I mean, I think dying and coming back to life at least four times is pretty impossible."

The others all nodded or voiced their agreement. What an odd crew they were - every type and class of Trainer, from many regions, and yet they all somehow managed to come together and find the one thing they shared.

...

Her Trainer was coming.

She could feel it. She could feel _him._ He was coming, and she couldn't have been happier.

It had been so long. Three years. Three years of nothing but waiting, and trying not to get captured. She didn't want to get captured by anyone else. She was waiting, waiting for _him._ He had promised he would come, and she trusted him.

The young Ralts began to get restless. He was coming. She knew he was. When her two sisters came to check on her, she eagerly told them what she felt. They, too, were excited by it. They knew how long she had been waiting. They knew she wanted so badly to see him again and be captured by him.

She was waiting in a small tree. This was a pretty little tree with pretty, sweet-scented leaves in the summertime. This was where she liked to spend some days, just thinking and enjoying the world around her.

Now, it was where she was waiting.

And she would continue to wait here until he came.

Her memories drifted back to that one fateful day, three years ago...

_She was hot. Everything around her was hot and hazy. There was an unbearable pain throughout her body, but mostly in her head. It was dreadful. She couldn't focus on a thing. _

_Then he came. She saw his face, and thought he was an angel come to help her. She felt his gentle arms lift her, felt his cool hands on her forehead and heard his worried, yet determined voice. She couldn't make out words, but she could hear his voice. _

_She felt him let her go, and heard his promise that it would be okay. Then all of the bright lights, and she blacked out. _

_When she awoke, th pain was gone. She saw him there. He was smiling now. _

_She leaped into his arms. He smiled and hugged her close. _

_"I promise I'll come back for you one day, okay?" He told her. "Wait for me until then." _

So she had waited. She had waited for three long years.

And now, at long last, he was coming back for her.

...

Riding atop Gary's Blastoise, Emily clutched Skitty close to her chest.

The Kitten Pokémon looked up and licked Emily's cheek. Emily smiled. Skitty was so cute, and so soft and warm, too. Emily gently petted the Pokémon's silky pink fur and sighed.

She had had an abnormal start to her journey, but that didn't change anything. She was still going to be a wonderful Trainer, and she was still going to have a close bond with all of her Pokémon.

Looking over at Trip, she smiled. Her cousin was pretty cool. He had started his journey late - when he was 11 - and was 12 years old now, and Emily told him he would make a great Gym Leader or Elite Four member. He disagreed with her, saying he was "just a Trainer, after all, and only 12. A 12-year-old can't be a Gym Leader. It's basic stuff."

Now, Emily grinned as she realized that the redheaded girl, Misty, had become a full-time Gym Leader when she was only 12. It was the reason she stopped traveling with Ash, as Emily had heard - something to do with her sisters going on a trip around the world? Well, anyway, now she had another reason to convince Trip to apply to be a Gym Leader.

Emily sighed. Her thoughts were all over the place. She really just didn't want to focus on the situation she was currently in - it was crazy, and not to mention kind of stressful.

The honey-haired Trainer sighed. She had the feeling it was going to be awhile before things were back to normal again.

...

**Well, there you go! There's the chapter! Hope you enjoyed! And I didn't give out virtual candy this time because I WANT IT AAAALLLLL... *eats all da candy* **

**:3 **


	27. Chapter 27: Team Rocket Strikes Again!

Okay, another chapter! PikaGelly commented in a review about last chapter: "the first one that didn't make me feel all crappy inside." Your victory is short lived, because this chapter is evil!

Also, Jake is Typhlosion8's OC!

...

"Huh?"

Ralts looked up, and her eyes widened. There was an adolescent boy standing there, looking somewhat surprised. He had messy dark blond hair and striking green eyes, which were"l staring at her intently. Ralts backed away. Trainer, she thought, terrified. H-he's a Trainer!

The boy noticed her terror and leaned down, concern showing on his face. "Hey, what's the matter?"

Ralts kept backing away. What if he wants to catch me? I can't be caught by him. My Trainer is coming. I have to wait for him, just a little longer. I can't get caught! She thought frantically.

'Please don't catch me...' she begged, knowing full well that he wouldn't understand. 'Please, just leave me alone!'

"Hey, it's okay, Ralts. I'll not trying to hurt you. And no, I don't want to catch you, either." The boy soothed.

Ralts blinked.'You - you don't want to catch me...?'

The boy smiled. "No. I'm happy with my Pidgeot, my best friend. Why are you so afraid of being caught?"

Ralts opened her mouth to speak, then closed it, as she had realized something. She opened it again. 'Wait, you - you - how do you...?'

He laughed. "Understand you? Well, I don't know, actually. All I know is that somehow, I can understand how a Pokémon feels, along with its thoughts. I can understand what you are saying through your thoughts, in a way. It took a while to get it right, but I can do it pretty well now. I think it has something to do with being born in Viridian City - at least, that's what I have been told. I have a twin sister, too... She has what you might call the 'other half' of the power. She can heal Pokémon by touching them."

'O-oh.' Ralts stared for a moment, comprehending the boy's backstory. Then she smiled. 'Wow... Well, as for why I'm scared to be caught, it's because I have a Trainer already. He's coming to get me soon. He made me promise to wait for him, and so I'm waiting.'

The boy nodded. "Ah, I see. How long have you been waiting for?"

'Um, three years or so, I think...' Ralts trailed off.

Immediately, his heart dropped like a stone.

Three years.

He had seen this kind of thing before. A Trainer would abandon a Pokémon with the promise that they would be back, and that Pokémon would end up waiting the rest of its life for the Trainer, who had no intention of coming back. It happened often with weak Pokémon, and the Ralts didn't look particularly strong, confirming the boy's belief. The poor Ralts had waited three long years, probably so lonely. It made him angry. Trainers could be so heartless.

What the boy didn't know, though, was that the Ralts didn't actually have a Trainer. She was waiting for someone who, for three years, had yet to even become a Trainer. She referred to him as her "Trainer" because that was how she thought of him. The boy who had found her didn't know that Ralts was waiting for someone who would, indeed, come back for her. And he didn't know that she was never actually lonely - she had her sisters, Gardevoir and Kirlia.

But the boy had seen enough in the past to be absolutely sure that his conclusion was correct. He bit his lip before speaking once more to Ralts.

"Ralts," he said gently. "Are you really, absolutely sure that your Trainer is coming back?"

Ralts nodded, her eyes shining. 'And he's really close now. I can feel it!'

He blinked. He was close by? That was interesting. Maybe he was coming back after all...? Just to be sure, the boy decided to check Ralts's memories, to see if her Trainer really had abandoned her. He closed his eyes and reached out, letting his hand hover over her forehead, and...

The boy was interrupted when said Pokémon gave a small gasp and dashed off. 'He's here, he's really here!' She was shouting excitedly.

The boy frowned and stood up. Oh, well. He hadn't gotten to really see Ralts's memories, but that didn't change his mind.

Now it was time to teach this kid a lesson for abandoning a helpless Pokémon like he apparently had.

...

When they landed on the shores of Sootopolis City, Max didn't hesitate to run for the woods. He dashed off, his eyes lighting up with anticipation.

"Whoa!" May cried as her brother ran off. "H-hey! Max, wait!" She ran after him.

There was a feeling deep inside Max that told him Ralts was close by. He let that feeling lead him, and sure enough, the tiny figure of a Pokémon could soon be seen running toward him.

"Ralts!" Max shouted.

"Ra ra!" Ralts squealed as she leaped into Max's arms. Max wrapped the little Pokémon in a hug.

"Man, I'm so glad to see you again," Max whispered.

"Ra ralts! Ra ra ralts ra!" Ralts said happily, and Max smiled. Finally, after three long years, he was reunited with the Pokémon whose life he'd saved. Finally, he had been able to fulfill his promise and come back for the little Ralts he had bonded with so long ago.

"You put that Ralts down!"

Max looked up in shock. He didn't recognize the voice at all, but he clearly heard the words that were spoken. Max narrowed his eyes as he saw the speaker: a Trainer - who looked to be about twelve - with messy dark blond hair and striking green eyes. Those eyes seemed familiar to Max. Why...?

He shook off the strange feeling. "Why would I put her down? What do you want with my Ralts?"

"Your Ralts?" The boy laughed bitterly. "You have the nerve to say that after you abandoned it three years ago?"

Max was startled by the other Trainer's odd comment. Abandon Ralts? He'd never do anything like that!

"I never abandoned Ralts! Who do you think you are, accusing me like that?" Max snapped.

"I don't need to tell that to someone like you," the boy snarled, pulling a Pokéball from his belt and expanding it. "Now, will you listen and put Ralts down or do I have to get nasty?"

"I won't let you touch my Ralts!" Max shouted and grabbed a Pokéball of his own. "Go, ZuZu!"

"Pidgeot, help me out!" The boy tossed his Ball up into the air, revealing his trusty partner.

"Zurill zu!" Max's young Azurill yelled defiantly. "Zu zurill!"

The boy seemed to falter for a moment, but Max didn't notice. "ZuZu, quick, use BubbleBeam!"

"Zu!" ZuZu obliged, and the attack made a direct hit with Pidgeot. However, it didn't seem to do too much damage.

"Pidgeot! Quick Attack!" The boy commanded. Pidgeot rushed toward ZuZu, screeching in fury, building speed, and ZuZu froze.

"ZuZu!" Max shouted desperately. He set Ralts to the side and leaped in front of ZuZu. The attack was now headed straight for Max, and it was too late for the other Trainer to tell Pidgeot to stop. Max shut his eyes tight and waited for the blow.

Ralts, meanwhile, was absolutely horrified. No! She thought.

"Ra ra ralts!" Ralts yelled and, to everyone's surprise, leaped to Max's aid, forming a barrier with Psychic and protecting Max and ZuZu from the attack.

Max breathed out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Ralts."

The other boy, meanwhile, was bewildered. Why would Ralts have done that? Was her bond with her Trainer really that strong? And if so, did that mean that he hadn't really abandoned her after all?

"MAX MAPLE!"

Max's eyes widened. He recognized that voice. Oh, no...

"MAX, WHAT IN ARCEUS'S NAME ARE YOU DOING?!" Max flinched. She was angry now. However much his sister seemed like a sweet, mild-mannered girl, when she got angry, it wasn't a pretty sight.

"Um... protecting Ralts from this dude who wants something with her, though I'm not sure what, and it really ended up with Ralts protecting me from his Pidgeot's Quick Attack, which probably would have hurt a lot..."

"What?!" May stormed up to him and helped him up. "You mean this guy sent his Pokémon at you?!"

"Guess you could say that," Max shrugged.

Meanwhile, the other Trainer was looking back and forth between May and Max, not really liking where the conversation seemed to be going. May glared daggers at him, and he backed away slowly. May approached him not-so-slowly.

"Look," she said through gritted teeth. "I don't know who you think you are, but nobody - and I mean nobody - attacks my little brother!" With that, she straight-up smacked him in the face.

His cheek stung. She was feisty... "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Look. I think we have a misunderstanding here. Your brother abandoned a Pokémon and left it alone for three years. I was trying to teach him a lesson with a Pokémon battle, but he jumped in the way of my Pidgeot's attack, and..." the Trainer trailed off, as his words seemed to go right over May's head.

Then a whole bunch of other kids showed up.

And, just his luck - they were the kids who'd gone missing a day ago.

"Great," he muttered to himself. Now he recognized the two he'd already met. They were part of that group, too.

And he had the feeling his life was about to get a lot more complicated.

...

Trip sighed. It had been a long day. First there had been the call from Professor Oak, which obviously affected Gary emotionally. Then they'd come all the way from Sinnoh to Hoenn in about five hours, leaving many of their Pokémon exhausted. And finally, Max had ended up nearly getting killed by some dude who believed Max had abandoned that Ralts three years ago... yeah, 'a long day' was an understatement.

The strange Trainer had introduced himself as Jake Owens, and apologized for the incident with his Pidgeot. May had finally decided that, since Max wasn't hurt anyway, she'd forgive Jake. Max had explained what actually happened with him and Ralts three years before, and Ralts seemed to back Max up. Trip couldn't understand what Ralts was saying, but that was what it looked like. Jake was embarrassed to realize that he was in the wrong, and apologized at least five times, also admitting that he had a habit of jumping to conclusions.

Then Jake explained that he had the power to understand what Pokémon were saying by reading their thoughts. He was hesitant to tell at first, and they were all pretty skeptical of it, but he was easily able to prove it.

"Pikachu, say something to Jake," Ash had said doubtfully.

"Pika," Pikachu conceded. "Pika pikachu, pikapi pikachu."

Jake nodded, them turned to Ash. "He said: 'I am Pikachu, and Ash is my Trainer' or something along the lines of that."

Pikachu looked up at Ash and nodded, confirming what Jake had said was true.

"Wow," Ash had said in awe. "That's... really cool."

Now, Trip was lying in his sleeping bag and trying to drift off to sleep. Yet, sleep refused to come. There was too much to think about, and he was really hungry anyway. Berries of anything at all to eat were a hard find, even though summer was fast approaching, and none of the Trainers had really eaten well. Going into Sootopolis City was out of the question, considering the circumstances, so hiding out and scavenging for food was really their best option. Jake had offered to buy some stuff for them, but before sweet tooth May could speak up, Drew had jumped in and kindly refused, saying that he didn't want Jake to spend money for them, and they didn't have any money of their own.

Trip sighed again and rolled over onto his side, trying to get comfortable. With a full head and an empty stomach, it was pretty hard. Trip realized that their situation probably wasn't about to get much better, and he wondered how long this was going to last.

Maybe, he thought, maybe if I hadn't ever gone to Pewter City to meet up with Emily, maybe I wouldn't be in this mess...

Then he looked over at Emily, sleeping peacefully beside him, and he shook his head to himself. No. If he wasn't in this mess, Emily probably still would be - and she would be much more alone.

So, as Trip looked up at the stars shining bright in the dark sky, Trip decided he didn't really regret that he was here. It was more interesting than his life at home, at least. And, with that thought in his mind, Trip was finally able to sleep.

...

Paul awoke to a rustle in the bushes.

He had always been a relatively light sleeper, and looking around at the others, who were sleeping soundly either in sleeping bags or on the grassy forest floor, he could see he was the only one.

Emily, Trip, Drew, May, and Max each had sleeping bags, because they had already been on a journey when the whole... incident... happened. The rest of them were stuck sleeping on the ground, like Paul was. It wasn't comfortable. At all.

Paul didn't move a muscle. His eyes were wide open, but if he had heard what he thought he did, then there was either a person or a wild Pokémon in the bushes near their makeshift camp. He honestly hoped it was the latter, considering that for a person to find them would do nothing but cause a whole lot of problems - as if they didn't have enough already.

That Jake kid was up sleeping in a tree. In Paul's opinion, that was just weird. Who slept in a tree? Not any sane person Paul knew.

Suddenly, there it was again! The noise. This time, Paul was pretty sure it was a person, from the way it seemed to be moving. Paul stayed still and lying down. He did not want whoever it was to realize that he knew they were there. And then, slowly, the person emerged from the bushes.

He appeared to be a man. He was dressed in all black, and Paul was filled with dread when he saw the huge, red "R" on his shirt.

A Rocket, he thought. Oh, crap. Oh, crap.

Slowly and silently, Paul reached for a Pokéball from his belt. Then, in a flash, he swiftly thrust the ball into the air, startling the Rocket agent.

"Go, Electivire!" Paul yelled. "Use Thunderpunch, now!"

The Rocket's eyes narrowed and he, too, reached for a Pokéball. "Banette, let's go! Use Reflect!"

Paul risked a glance back at the others, who were waking up to the sounds of a battle. "Go!" He hissed at them. "Get out of here!"

Brock and Gary were on their feet the quickest, and neither hesitated to wake the others and help them up. Max grabbed hold of May in terror, and she held him close. "It'll be okay, Max," she whispered, though her own eyes were wide with fear.

The Rocket agent, meanwhile, had realized what was going on. "Oh, no you don't!" He growled. "Banette, Shadow Ball!"

Paul's eyes widened when he realized that the attack wasn't aimed from Electivire, but for the other Trainers as they tried to escape. When the Shadow Ball hit, a high-pitched, feminine scream echoed above the sound of the huge explosion. Paul's heartbeat quickened. He knew that voice - he knew it very well.

When the smoke cleared, most of the Trainers were back on their feet, if a little shaky, having avoided a direct hit. But Paul gave a startled gasp when he saw her, lying unconscious on the ground, her clothes tattered and her hair a mess.

"Dawn!" Brock yelled, and rushed to her side. While the Gym Leader was distracted, Banette aimed another Shadow Ball at him, which sent him flying into a tree with a sickening crack.

"Brock!" Misty cried out.

"Misty, go! Help him!" Ash shouted over his shoulder as he stepped forward to aid Paul in the battle. "Paul and I can hold this guy off! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu's signature move hit the Banette along with a Thunderpunch from Paul's Electivire. Banette stumbled back, and it looked close to fainting.

"Okay, now use Electro Ball!" Ash commanded.

"Electivire, Fire Punch!" Paul yelled to his Pokémon.

But Banette avoided both attacks and proceeded to use Leech Life on Paul. Paul let out a strangled gasp as he felt his energy being sucked out of him, and he collapsed.

The Rocket was grinning. "That's three. Now, what about the rest of you? Will you be nice and come with me, or does this have to get nasty?"

The other Trainers narrowed their eyes, and each pulled out a Pokéball. They weren't giving up that easily.

Then the Rocket agent snapped his fingers, and at least twenty more dropped in, each holding a Pokéball of their own.

"This," Ash muttered, looking around at all the Rockets, "is bad."

...

Iris was terrified.

She didn't scare easily - well, the mere presence of an Ice-type did shake her pretty badly, but other than that, she didn't - but this would have been enough to terrify anyone.

She was chained to this strange machine, and she could hardly move. Giovanni was standing in a glass walled room with some strange man she was pretty sure was named Proton, talking. Looking to her left, Iris could see Cilan chained up to a similar machine. He gave her a weak smile.

"It'll be okay, Iris," the connoisseur assured her but he didn't sound confident in his words. Iris nodded. She wasn't confident it would be okay, either.

Then Proton leaned down toward what Iris assumed was the control box for the strange machines and pushed a button.

Horrible, unbearable pain landed through Iris's body. She let out a tortured scream, and she could hear another, more masculine scream from her left. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the pain subsided and the chains dropped Iris. She fell to the ground with a groan, and the last thing she saw was Proton pulling a strange-looking jar of light from out of the machine. Then her consciousness faded and her mind went into oblivion.

...

"How's Dawn doing?"

"I don't know. Her breathing is shallow and she feels really hot..."

"That's not good."

"What about Brock?"

"He... he isn't doing well..."

"What do you mean, not doing well?"

"I mean, he's on the brink of death right now."

...

**I AM SO SORRY if you read the chapter earlier! It got cut off at the end, but I fixed it now. :3 if you didn't read it earlier, well, then kudos to you for not getting confused and being like, "Where is the rest of this chapter?!" **

**Well, either way, I hope you enjoyed! Plus I have a new fic up so you might wanna look at that one, too!**


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